This short transcript captures TJ Walker giving media-communication advice: when speaking to reporters you must define a clear, concrete problem to create compelling stories; pair problem statements with solutions and, where possible, use visual or specific framing to attract media attention.
Chapters
You got a problem? Well, you should address a problem. If you're talking to the news media, you need to define problems. After all, what are reporters and journalists? They're storytellers. What does every great story have? Conflict. What's a part of every conflict? A problem. So when you're talking to reporters and you're trying, trying to come up with an interesting, compelling message, you need to define a problem. If you're in a business, what problems do you solve for people? If you're in politics, what problems do you solve for your city, your state, your country? There has to be some compelling message that identifies the problem. Now, you don't just want to complain and carp and talk about problems. You need to talk about solutions, too. But in order to get the attention, to grab the attention of the media, you need to define the problem clearly in a specific way, a concrete way, preferably a visual way. But if you do that, you will make your whole message, your whole platform, much more compelling to the news media. So define your problem.