Media Training Worldwide

TJ’s Insights

September 30, 2005

Complexity Equals Media Controversy

Voters often complain that politicians spout out simplistic bromides and empty solutions to real national problems. That may be true. But politicians, business leaders and anyone else who deals with the news media have every reason to be fearful of trying to convey complex ideas through the media. The reality is that it is to easy for complex ideas to be picked apart and then turned into objects of ridicule.

Case in point:

Bill Bennett, the former Reagan and Bush Cabinet official and current conservative talk radio host, got himself into trouble on Wednesday September 28, 2005 when he said this on his national show:

“If you wanted to reduce crime, you could -- if that were your sole purpose -- you could abort every black baby in this country, and your crime rate would go down."

Seemingly, this is racist, shocking and indefensible. Bennett was then roundly castigated by leading Democratic officials and pundits across the spectrum.

However, context is everything when it comes to delivering complex public policy opinions. Bennett also said that aborting babies was ''an impossible, ridiculous and morally reprehensible thing to do, but your crime rate would go down. So these far-out, these far-reaching, extensive extrapolations are, I think, tricky.''

Bennett was actually trying to make a point AGAINST all abortion and his arguments were chopped up, taken out of context, and used against him. (I don’t feel sorry for Bennett; he is a demagogue who makes millions of dollars writing books about how anyone who disagrees with him politically is immoral--then he loses his millions in the casinos at the video poker machines!)

The lesson here is NOT that you should always play it safe and bland in front of the media. But you should be careful about using outrageous hyperbole to prove a point, especially if your extreme examples fit into the pre-conceived negative stereotypes your opponents already have of you.

If you would you like to learn how to use the principles described in these insights, you may want to consider attending TJ’s next public speaking training workshop http://www.mediatrainingworkshop.com/

Or his public media training workshop http://presentationtrainingworkshop.com/

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TJ Walker

Media Training Worldwide

212-764-4955

Media Training Worldwide provides more media and presentation training workshops and seminars (54 separate courses) than any other company in the world. Media Training Worldwide also publishes more than 100 presentation training books, DVDs, CDs, and other information products and is the largest presentation/media training publisher in the world. For a product catalog or more information on training services call 800-755-7220 or visit http://mediatrainingworldwide.com/mediatrainingcatalogapril2004.pdf.

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