Watch Your Language
CURRENTS Article Since 1976, Lake Superior State University in Michigan has released a list of words that should be "banished from the Queen's English for misuse, overuse and general uselessness." Submissions to the list are submitted by the public and come in from all over the world. The self-proclaimed publicity stunt, released each New Year's Day, earns the small institution media coverage from dozens of media outlets.

Office Space: Pitch Craft
CURRENTS Article This article is intended to help communications professionals improve their relationships with reporters by offering tips for them to be better sources of information and ideas.

Office Space: Meet the (Student) Press
CURRENTS Article This article looks at why it's important to have a good relationship with the campus newspaper and offers tips on building a positive and professional rapport.

Medios combinados
CURRENTS Article Manejar el fragmentado entorno mediático actual y aprovechar las redes sociales son acciones críticas para el éxito de la prensa.

Mixed Media
CURRENTS Article Successful media relations in today’s world require institutions to communicate their message online and across several social media platforms as well as to traditional media. The article discusses institutions’ use of YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, blogs, and distinct distribution channels to disseminate stories to their various audiences and constituents.

Selling Science
CURRENTS Article This article explains how communications professionals at colleges and universities can take complex, technical stories about science and research and make them sing for mass audiences.

The Whirlwind of Media Relations Technology
CURRENTS Article How to stay abreast of promising technologies without getting confused by the dizzying pace of change

Hiding in Plain Sight
CURRENTS Article This article, a complement to "User Generation," examines how, with the advent of Web 2.0 technologies, crises can blow out of proportions in a matter of minutes. The author outlines strategies for preparing, managing, and surviving a crisis in a hyper-connected, always-on news world.

Changing Lanes
CURRENTS Article Aided by advances in Internet and cell phone technology, "citizen" journalists are shaping the news like never before. But this new brand of journalism isn't dependent on tragic events or breaking news--blogs, podcasts, and more affect the gathering, transmission, and shaping of the news. This article examines these and other trends in journalism, including information on demand and audience fragmentation, and how they might affect education. This article does not include case studies or tips for navigating this new media landscape, but rather offers campus communications professionals serious food for thought.

AdvanceWork: The Paper Chase
CURRENTS Article Why do some institutions continue to publish paper media guides when journalists can access the same information from their Web sites? Campus communications and marketing professionals say they are sticking with print because paper guides provide easier access to information and can be used for institutional marketing and public relations purposes.

Meet the Prez
CURRENTS Article There are many reasons why CEOs want to get in front of journalists--the campus just survived a major crisis or is moving in a new direction, for example. As the people charged with making it happen, public relations pros should carefully plan visits with editorial boards and other media representatives to make the most of these important meetings. The author, a seasoned journalist, outlines several strategies for making such encounters as effective as possible, including timing, who to meet with, who to bring, and what to say.

Closing Remarks: Media Plan
CURRENTS Article Campuses increasingly face scrutiny from reporters and editorial boards amid one of the worst economic downturns academe ever has experienced. The quality of press coverage about education varies widely, and some news reports are simplistic, overly critical, or inaccurate. But rather than bash the media, campus leaders need to heed the new realities.

Living Publicly
CURRENTS Article A 24/7 news cycle, the Internet, an accountability revolution, and a smaller news hole are just a few of the factors changing campus media relations programs.

AdvanceWork: Prescription for Sanity
CURRENTS Article Unrealistic media expectations can plague CEOs, faculty, and advancement officers. This AdvanceWork item looks at four common problems and suggests strategies to solve them. It is of particular interest to media relations professionals.

Speaking Through the Media
CURRENTS Article When crucial issues such as public funding for higher education are being debated, the right media coverage can make an important difference in the attitudes of legislators and taxpayers. Media relations and government relations staff sometimes find working with reporters to be challenging. But the article includes numerous examples of institutions that have successfully reached out to legislators and the media on key issues.

Pressing Questions
CURRENTS Article An interview with Bob Durkee, former editor of the Princeton University student newspaper in the 1960s, now the university's vice president for public affairs, on the relationship between the campus administration and the student press. He discusses how the Internet has changed the role of student journalism, editorial and financial independence, and how student editors' interests and goals have changed over time.

Science Lessons
CURRENTS Article Public information officers often find themselves in the midst of controversy surrounding their institutions’ scientific research activities. That’s only one part of communicating science, however. Even though not every project will make headlines, PIOs must communicate important, complex research every day. Key to that task is establishing rapport with the scientists, presenting science to lay readers, and explaining why it’s important without overhyping.

September 11, 2001
CURRENTS Article The 2001 terrorist attack placed many demands on advancement offices. Institutions in New York City established command centers to manage communications and emergency response amid human loss and facility damage. Elsewhere, advancement professionals dealt with such tasks as reporting the status of alumni and parents, connecting campus experts with reporters, rescheduling alumni travel, rewriting magazine issues, and postponing or adjusting fund-raising calls.

A Crisis of Legendary Proportions
CURRENTS Article Simpson, vice president for public affairs at Indiana University, describes how IU’s communications team handled a six-month media firestorm over basketball coach Bob Knight. The team followed a predetermined crisis communications strategy that called for developing a media relations plan, establishing a single media spokesperson, maintaining open and continuous communications, and expecting the unexpected. Simpson also describes what his team learned from the experience.

All Elian, All the Time
CURRENTS Article For the University of Miami news media office, the Elian Gonzalez saga meant a crush of requests for interviews with faculty experts and the university president. The public relations staff found ways to handle the media frenzy judiciously and parlayed it into mentions in more than 1,500 news stories.

Tech Support: Is Your Web Site Media-Friendly?
CURRENTS Article Public relations staff should ensure that their media Web sites meet the needs of reporters and editors. The site should be easy to search and navigate and quick to download; content must be up to date, well organized, and simple to skim, with contact information integrated throughout.

The Court of Law vs. the Court of Public Opinion
CURRENTS Article The responsibilities of public relations officers can seem at odds with those of attorneys during a campus legal crisis. The lawyers want to limit release of information; PR staffers often need to get the story out to retain public confidence. But both groups share an interest in protecting the institution’s reputation, and can work together, starting from this common ground.

AdvanceWork: When Professors Talk …
CURRENTS Article … reporters listen. A guide to institutional liability when faculty members speak out of line

Small Office: Maximizing Output
CURRENTS Article Two directors of small communications offices offer four strategies to help ensure staff productivity: 1) Strategize as a group in weekly planning sessions. 2) Establish credibility with the media by working with integrity and providing information quickly and accurately. 3) Train faculty members in media relations so that their efforts complement yours. 4) Streamline and recycle news releases by sending tip sheets via fax and e-mail, and by finding new angles for stories that aren't picked up on the first pitch.

AdvanceWork: He Said, She Said
CURRENTS Article Problem/Solution

Write-Minded: News Alert
CURRENTS Article A media advisory is a one-page, easy-to-digest notice designed to enable busy assignment editors and broadcast producers to evaluate an event's newsworthiness. PR consultant Sims offers these tips to construct a successful one: 1) If your event features several headliners, highlight the one most likely to interest the media outlet you're targeting. 2) Customize your headline and lead for the recip

Tech Support: Confessions of a ProfNet Junkie
CURRENTS Article Little, a public affairs director, describes his use -- and occasional overuse -- of ProfNet, an Internet service that enables public information officers to supply experts in response to reporters' queries. He offers tips to help ProfNet users make the most of the service: 1) Know your faculty members, their areas of expertise, and their comfort with the media. 2) Consider the commitment of time

Not Just for Alumni Anymore
CURRENTS Article Campus communicators can use special events to cultivate relationships with reporters, maintain campus relations, and raise the institution's visibility. PR officers from many institutions describe their success with: 1) nontraditional press conferences designed around themed receptions or hands-on demonstrations; 2) creative groundbreaking ceremonies; and 3) thank-you events for helpful journalists.

In Advance: Rules of Netiquette
CURRENTS Article When sending electronic mail messages to the press, remember to use a business style, don’t add the journalist to your mailing list without first asking permission, send attachments as plain text, keep track of responses, and consider if you would want your e-mail messages forwarded to others.

What Are We Doing Wrong?
CURRENTS Article In an interview with CURRENTS staff, Chronicle of Higher Education managing editor Scott Jaschik describes how those who cover the education beat approach sensitive issues like campus crime, or tuition costs, why journalists may feel thwarted by campus administrators in trying to cover these stories, and how providing more information may be beneficial to educational institutions in presenting an accurate picture of these often difficult situations. Specific examples of the types of information the media may want on various issues are presented.

In Advance: Just the Facts
CURRENTS Article Give a summary of all your facts—already verified, of course—to reporters in advance of an interview. Keep reporters "on message" during interviews. It won't hurt to restate the key facts—and you can cover yourself by asking reporters to verify they received your materials.

In Advance: So Many Clips, So Little Time
CURRENTS Article Tired of clipping newspaper articles about your campus? Tom Krattenmaker of Swarthmore College moved from a paper clipping service to an electronic method and cut his news surveillance costs by more than half. Here's how to do it.

Good Chemistry
CURRENTS Article Cornell University professor of science communications Lewenstein talks about the value of bringing scientists and public information officers together during his workshops. These workshops help reporters and scientists understand what the public wants and needs to know about science. In particular, it’s important to focus on providing the public a means to develop both a practical and civic science literacy. For the most part, Lewenstein finds that campuses do a good job of promoting scientific research news.

In Advance: Bring in the Reporters
CURRENTS Article Eight ways to draw journalists to your online press room—and keep them coming back for more