Public Affairs Specialists

Why Your Public Affairs Officer (PAO) &

Publications Officer Should be Trained PA Specialists

NTRAIN 2013

Tag: YOU ARE IT!

• Leadership studies show “it” starts at the top and filters down • When leaders value communication of auxiliary events, missions and needs - others value it too • Your support for active, informative, accurate news releases, newsletters and other public affairs activities is essential to getting the job done right

2

Insist on Trained PA Specialists

Flotilla, Division, District and National Levels They have to know

USCG and USCG Auxiliary PA Policy • Journalism • Photography • News Formats • AP style • Coastie Rules • Boat Shows • Marketing

3

Plus they must have

Thorough knowledge of USCG and Auxiliary Missions Technology skills People skills Organization skills Command of Standard English

Written and Spoken Skills in building networks Sense of purpose Sense of Responsibility They should also have a Good Personality

4

But Why Public Affairs (PA)?

According to USCG Public Affairs Policy: “…we have a legal and ethical responsibility to tell the public how we are spending their tax dollars, there are other reasons PA makes good sense…”

• Educating the public • Recruiting • Retention • Saving lives • Budgets From the Coast Guard Public Affairs Course Handbook, revised June 2010.

5

USCG Auxiliary…

• Has the same missions and charges as our active duty counterparts with the exception of law enforcement and warfare.

• Consequently we also have a legal and ethical responsibility to tell the story, tell it all, tell it well, and tell it in a timely manner following USCG and USCG Auxiliary Policies.

6

Who are we trying to reach?

• General public – tax payers • Community leaders • USCG & USCG Auxiliary members • Our customers

• Recreational boaters • Fishermen • Sportsmen using boats as a base • Marine dealers • Water event organizers

7

How do we reach them?

• Do you know? • Does your PAO know? • If not why not? • Training helps Staff Officers PA& PB know where to go and how to get the message out

8 Copyright 2007 - Coast Guard Auxiliary Association, Inc.

What are the 3 PA Activities?

• Internal Relations • Media Relations • Community Relations

9

First of three PA Activities

Internal Relations Building and maintaining relationships with active

duty members, civilians, retirees, reservists, auxiliarists and family members.

10 Copyright 2007 - Coast Guard Auxiliary Association, Inc.

Second of three PA Activities

Media Relations Contacting the media with the intent of getting

them to publish or broadcast news about the Coast Guard. Media Relations is the primary focus of … local, division and …district public affairs staffs.

11

Third of Three PA Activities

Community Relations Being a contributing part of the community in which you work and live. COMREL can only be run effectively by individual commands, by those who live and work there.

12

The Coast Guard Way

Maximum disclosure minimal delay • We tell the good and the bad news, withholding only

information which would jeopardize mission or safety of those conducting mission and or violate privacy of those involved.

Your PA officer must know how to make these

decisions correctly and quickly

13 Copyright 2007 - Coast Guard Auxiliary Association, Inc.

Who is Responsible for PA

According to the USCG PA Policy: • The bulk of the responsibility for every public affairs program lies on

the shoulders of the commanding officer. .. • … is responsible for implementing public affairs policies and

programs at the unit level.

TAG YOU ARE IT … You will designate PAO & PB , but ultimately, it is you who will bear the responsibility.

YOU must be able to trust your PAO & PB will know and do the right things.

14

Do not be a SAPP - disaster

• Do you know what SAPP is? • Does your PAO? • SAPP - guides the release of information and must be followed S – Security A – Accuracy P – Policy P – Propriety

• Your PAO will learn this in training… it is necessary

15 Copyright 2007 - Coast Guard Auxiliary Association, Inc.

Quick - What is FOIA?

Do you know right now?

Does your PAO?

If not, your public affairs program may be non-compliant

16

FOIA: MUST KNOW

FOIA is the Freedom of Information Act • But what are the conditions, stipulations and exceptions of that act? Do you or your PAO know where to go to find out?

17

FOIA, Freedom of Information ACT

… provides the American public with access to government records that are not critical to national security. It mandates that all information in the possession of the government is releasable except for nine specific categories of information. Do you know those nine categories? Does your PAO?

18

Beyond the Legalities

• Traditionally, FSO-PA, Flotilla Public Affairs staff officers produced flyers that advertised Auxiliary Safe Boating Classes and maybe went to a radio or TV interview. • They also went to boat shows, set up booths and talked to people Their role was limited at best. That’s not true today.

19

USCG Active Duty PAOs

• There are not as many as you might think

• DINFOS, Department of Information School has very limited billets (seats) • Armed forces get billets based on total number of personnel in each service • Coast Guard does not get many seats – limiting PAOs • Local Stations or units may not have a PAO, they probably have a “collateral duty” person who acts as PAO.

20

In Recent Years AUX PAOs

Have served with our Active Duty shipmates in: • Hurricane Katrina – New Orleans • Haiti during the earthquake’s aftermath

• Auxiliarist developed use of social media locating trapped survivors resulting in lives saved

• Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill cleanup • Backfill local units, Emergency Centers and Joint Information Centers • External Affairs at Unified Area Command Center – New Orleans • Fielding Media Requests at Joint Information Centers throughout Gulf Coast • Photographing to document conditions and recovery efforts

21

USCG and Auxiliary PAO’s

• May help with publishing station news /events in the community • It is OK to be coverless while on camera during live interviews.

22

AUX PAO and PBs

•Have designed and maintained USCG Station websites • Have assisted Sectors with posting to websites such as Homeport

23 Copyright 2007 - Coast Guard Auxiliary Association, Inc.

Active Duty and AUX PAO’s

• Active Duty personnel may attend Auxiliary functions • Active Duty provides static displays at PA events

24

USCG Active Duty & AUX PAO’s

USCG may depend on AUX PAO to:

• Set up television/radio interviews

• Act as liaison with local media; print and broadcast

• Act as liaison with local agencies

25

AUX PAOs

• Promote and publicize delivery of new assets • Coordinate familiarization tours for new assets coming into the unit.

26

Now Ask Yourself

• Are my public affairs staff officer and my publications staff officer ready to step up to the plate? Am I? • Can they handle all of this willingly and enthusiastically? Could I? • If you are feeling a bit squirmy you are now seeing and understanding that training is necessary

27

Effective PAOs

• Know what everyone else is doing • It is their job/duty to get into everyone’s business • They must know USCG and USCG Auxiliary Programs if they are to help tell the story and promote boating safety

28

You Choose Which You Want

U UNTRAINED TRAINED In proper uniform !

Tom Nunes simulating boat show posture of some untrained PAOs at AUX 12 “C” School Baltimore 2010.

29

In an AUX 12 “C” School class Tom shows PAOs how to be up, actively greeting and engaging their audiences.

Your PAO = Your Unit’s Image

Want the job done well? Want to avoid the hassles poor handling of Public Affairs can bring?

• Support your Public Affairs and Publication Officers by providing and insisting on training

• Get them into AUX 12 “C “School and/or the online Public Affairs Courses

• Reward their attainment of Public Affairs Specialists at PA I, PA II, and PAIII levels

When it is important to you, it will be important to your PA an PB officers as well

30

Support Compliance by…

• Insisting that USCG Auxiliary Public Affairs and Publications Officers follow all USCG and USCG Auxiliary Guidelines • Provide manuals to each incoming Staff officer for PA and PB. Electronic versions of these are online

• As a leader know the rules particularly ones dealing with “vetting.” Not following these will get you in trouble

• PREVIEW all articles, news releases, brochures, blogs, etc. before they are published

31

Follow the PSRT Principle…

• Protect - overload is not a good thing

• Support - PA’s can not do it all

• Reward – It is their only pay

• Train – training is key to successful Public Affairs programs

32