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How to get on TV (or anywhere else in the media)

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So you have a story to tell and you think the news should tell it?

You want to help more people by getting on a major platform like television?

You saw a guy you went to college with, you two have the same amount of experience… yet HE ALWAYS gets interviewed when the news is looking for someone in your industry?

Want “the news” to talk about YOUR company and give it a big boost in sales?

I hear it all the time.

“Why doesn’t the news call me? I have the best (fill in the blank).”

Here’s the BIG SECRET:

If you want it, you have to go get it.

The majority of the time, they’re not hunting down people to interview.

YOU have to make the call, email, text….

So, how do you do that?

Media training.

Media training teaches you:

  • How to create a story that is marketable to the media
  • How to dig up the marketable, sellable and pitchable story that’s inside of you or your company
  • How to present that story to the media
  • Who you need to talk to… who the major players are that make the decisions on what story to run, where to run it (and which to delete)
  • What to say when you get the booking
  • What to wear on TV, in a magazine shoot, for a newspaper shoot, or on radio (seriously… ask me why)
  • The best haircut/style for your face on TV
  • How to do your makeup for TV so you look alive but don’t look too made-up (and not like yourself)
  • How to carry yourself physically during the interview
  • Verbal delivery skills
  • How to answer a question when you don’t want to answer a question
  • How to answer a question when you can’t answer a question (proprietary information, part of an active investigation… or you just don’t know the answer)
  • How to frame your message during the interview
  • How to get the interviewer focused on the message that you want to focus on
  • Where the story will show up
  • How long to wait for the story to show up
  • How to get your website link on air, in an article or mentioned on the radio
  • How to share the story later to take advantage of the media hit and gain more followers (or make more sales)

Media training gives you the skills to develop a strong, clear message that sticks with your audience. It positions you to deliver it effectively and impactfully. Media training is also the best way to develop strong skills when it comes to interacting with the media, making sure your message isn’t lost or misinterpreted through nerves.

Media trainers work with individuals and teams of people.

I am a professional media trainer with 20+ years of experience in TV. (I have a bunch of Emmy Awards too.)

I coach on how to use appropriate body language, strong message building, and how to navigate those uncomfortable questions. The training experience arms you with what you need to effectively and confidently engage with the media.

Not convinced you need it? Here’s a little more …

It puts you in control of your interviews

You’ve seen or heard it before: an interview that is a complete flop. The person being interviewed forgets his or her key points, forgets important information, or flat out stumbles the whole way through.

The journalist may be the one asking you the questions, but in reality, you are in control of the interview. A media trainer works with you on composure and focusing on key messages so you can create the outcome you want in the interview. When your responses are clear and delivered well, you are able to subtly but strongly steer the interview the direction you want.

It teaches you to navigate the hard questions

Even if you are in control of your interview, you are still going to be faced with the hard questions. These questions may put you on the spot and be difficult to answer. With media training, you’re armed with skills to answer these tough questions. Your media trainer will practice these tough questions to prep you and craft answers that help you stay in control of the interview. This helps you feel confident going into an interview that may have particularly tough questions, even if they come at you unexpectedly.

It polishes your personal delivery

When you speak on television, the audience is watching your body language and facial expressions. People pick up on these things and they pay close attention to them. Media training teaches you how to use your words, tone, and body language to deliver your message in a powerful and effective way.

In addition to delivery, media training can help with interviewing anxiety. For those who are terrified by interviews, especially live radio and/or television ones, developing interview skills and confidence can be the most beneficial part of the media training experience. You’ll face every interview head-on without worrying about getting stuck.

Media training helps you even if you have NO desire to be in the media. Because of the training, my clients are better on stage, during job interviews, and presenting in front of small groups at work.

Kathryn Janicek | Media Coach, Producer, Public Speaking Trainer
Kathryn Janicek is a three-time Emmy Award-winning television producer with 20 years of experience working in newsrooms across the country. Kathryn coached talent, producers, and writers before switching her focus on helping entrepreneurs and corporate executives. Now, based in her home city of Chicago, she is a much sought-after media coach and public speaking trainer who will help you produce the best YOU. Click HERE now to book a complimentary 30-minute consultation with Kathryn.

What We Learned From the Total Solar Eclipse That Can Make Us All Better Human Beings

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If you’re like me, you were confused about all the information surrounding what glasses to wear during yesterday’s eclipse.

We can learn a lot about the need for multiple sources from the total solar eclipse story.

Like many news stories – some of the information was right, some was wrong. Whether you read the paper or watched your favorite meteorologist, you heard about 100 different ways to watch it. We heard things like go to Home Depot or Lowe’s and get welder’s glasses. Then we heard the welder’s glasses had to be #10s or they have to be #12s. It kept changing. I went to about four different Home Depot and Lowe’s the last 3 or 4 days (we just bought a new house and we’ve been regulars at the home improvement stores) and they were all sold out. ALL the grades of welder’s glasses. Probably the first time in history. Therefore, there were people looking up at the sun with the wrong glasses. Glasses that may give them a false sense of safety.

What’s scary, is there was not one message out in the media the last couple of weeks about what kind of glasses or what kind of cereal box or what kind of thing you can create or make to watch the eclipse with you and your kids (not your pets). In fact, NASA was trying to keep up with it all so it could let people know what was the real info to follow.

My husband works in healthcare and he was at a conference last week in Orlando where he was given glasses that were supposed to be great for the eclipse. A couple of days later – he received an email from the conference organizers telling all attendees to throw away the glasses. They weren’t safe. Even health care experts gave their people the wrong glasses.

I ended up working all day and just watched the eclipse live on WGN-TV. I knew the most passionate person would be meteorologist, Tom Skilling. I was NOT disappointed. In fact, he made news covering the story. He was so happy, overwhelmed and tired – that he started crying. You can read more about that here. I worked with Tom at WGN. Tom is exactly what you see on TV. He’s LOVES his job. He LOVES people. He stops and talks to every person who calls his name. There are not a lot of people in TV like Tom.

The solar eclipse story is a good example of why you, as an informed citizen, need to watch many, many, many sources of news.

Look what happened with the coverage of Charlottesville, Virginia. It hit on a Friday night and into Saturday when there’s less TV news coverage. So if you jumped over to Twitter for your news and only follow a certain kind of person — you would think it’s one story while it could be something entirely different.

Journalists covering the racial violence in Charlottesville struggled to find the right words to tell you the story. Some sanitized it. Some didn’t show the most hateful pictures. They censored much of what you saw on TV. A big reason is you can’t show “bad” words on TV.

So you – as a viewer – don’t get the big picture.

This is why you have to watch, read, follow and listen to many sources of news.

If you just watch FOX News, it’s really important to watch CNN a few times a week. Throw in some BBC too so you can see another viewpoint on what’s going on here in the United States and in other countries.

If you follow people like David Duke (for example) you saw his brand of news Saturday. I follow him because I like to see what EVERYONE is saying. I like to see the news people are disseminating, so I can understand when people have certain thoughts or beliefs. I don’t censor my viewing or reading. I WANT to know what’s being shared. I want to know what people think. People who aren’t like me. People who don’t have the same beliefs. If I have a better picture of the world – I personally feel that I can be a better person. I can better understand how people feel and why they feel a certain way.

Here’s a really quick way or you to get a lot of news first thing each morning from many sources. Click here —–> theSkimm.

Don’t censor yourself by watching one news channel or reading one source of news on the web. Broaden your sources so you can be a more informed person and possibly, a more understanding person.

If you watch or read only one source of news and believe it — you could get a lot more than just retina damage.

PS: Congratulations to Mission 2 Organize – Professional Organizing & Productivity! I’m happy to have been able to land them this article on moving. Articles like this are great to help you with SEO and get more people looking at your website!

Kathryn Janicek | Media Coach, Producer, Public Speaking Trainer
Kathryn Janicek is a three-time Emmy Award-winning television producer with 20 years of experience working in newsrooms across the country. Kathryn coached talent, producers, and writers before switching her focus on helping entrepreneurs and corporate executives. Now, based in her home city of Chicago, she is a much sought-after media coach and public speaking trainer who will help you produce the best YOU. Click HERE now to book a complimentary 30-minute consultation with Kathryn!

What NOT to Do When You’re on TV or Speaking in Public

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Picture courtesy of CBS This Morning

 

When I’m watching TV news, my ears always perk up when I hear real estate or investing stories. The other day, I was watching CBS This Morning while running around the house.

We just purchased a house and we’re in moving mode packing and interviewing renters to live in our other place, so this story on TV particularly caught my attention.

The mayor of Reno, Nev-AA-da (she went on and on about how to properly pronounce Nevada) was on talking about the growth there, housing prices and why people were attracted to the area.

I was listening without watching – but became annoyed and distracted by something during the interview. I no longer was hearing what she was saying. Instead, I heard this clanging.

I tried to tune it out – but I couldn’t.

It was this… can you hear it?

At first, I thought it was her jewelry, but when she came back on camera, I saw it wasn’t a jewelry issue. I coach all my clients NOT to wear “loud” jewelry on camera or on stage. Not loud as in color – but loud as in banging up against your microphone. It’s very distracting.

But after they took another wide shot of her and the anchors – I could see it was her rings banging up against her coffee mug.

Lesson learned: don’t make movements that make noise and compete against your own voice. You want your audience to hear YOU and not your clothing, jewelry or shoes shuffling on the ground. Whether you’re on TV, speaking at a podium, or across the table from your executives in the boardroom, it’s your CONTENT we want them to remember — not the banging of your rings against a coffee mug.

Want to hear more? Check out what I shared live on Facebook, then be sure to follow my page for daily posts with timely news and tips. Make sure to like the page today so that you don’t miss the next live Q&A!

Kathryn Janicek | Media Coach, Producer, Public Speaking Trainer
Kathryn Janicek is a three-time Emmy Award-winning television producer with 20 years of experience working in newsrooms across the country. Kathryn coached talent, producers, and writers before switching her focus on helping entrepreneurs and corporate executives. Now, based in her home city of Chicago, she is a much sought-after media coach and public speaking trainer who will help you produce the best YOU. Click HERE now to book a complimentary 30 minute consultation with Kathryn!

When You Can’t Buy Coffee

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It was six o’clock on a Sunday morning and I raced out of bed to buy coffee.

I wanted to beat the others.

You see, I tried Saturday, but the line was WAY too long. It was down the street. In my opinion, no coffee is worth standing in that kind of line.

My strategy of going Sunday morning before everyone else hit the streets paid off. There’s was no line and I sipped my grande dry almond milk cappuccino in peace. Well, along with a pain au chocolat with crème d’amande from the very French bakery next door, Le Panier. I will dream of those for a long time.

Breakfast at Starbucks

I was in Seattle, drinking coffee made at the first ever Starbucks. Now, if I could just run into one of my favorite 90s grunge bands, my day would be made.

While my husband didn’t understand, I wanted to see if it tasted different. If it stood out. If it was anything special.

It was good. Okay, it was delicious. But, it was really the location and experience that made this a great cappuccino.

When I travel – I always have a list of things I want to see. For our trip to Seattle, I wanted to listen to the music of my high school/college years, see the Space Needle, shop Pike Place Market and have coffee in the first Starbucks. Okay, I see you rolling your eyes over there. I know, it’s just giving more money to this gigantic corporation — but, it’s also a piece of our pop culture. To me, it’s worth seeing.

Seattle Starbucks Coffee

In the news biz, coffee is a big deal. I worked on TV morning news shows for longer than I’d like to admit. You work so early in the morning (or late at night) that coffee is your fuel. The problem is, unless you brew it yourself, it’s REALLY hard to get good quality coffee before work. The coffee shops are all closed and McDonald’s, as good as this piece in Business Insider says it’s coffee is getting … doesn’t sell coffee that early in the morning. Seriously.

You’d think it would be no problem. Roll into a McDonald’s drive-thru around 2am on a Wednesday morning, grab a McCafe, don’t burn yourself, and head into work.

Sadly, it doesn’t work that way.

I found that no matter how many drive-thrus I tried, it was downright impossible to buy coffee at McDonald’s at that time of the day. I tried several of them around Chicago, but would often get the same story: “This is when we clean our machines.”

So, yeah, no coffee at 2am as I headed into NBC or WGN … or any of the other stations in which I worked.

Seattle Starbucks Coffee
Peering past my coffee at the Pike Place Market street sign.

As morning producers, we all knew what time Starbucks opened in the morning. It was too late to launch us into our shifts – but it was just in time to get us through the second half of our hours spent turning out stories each morning.

There are TV news producers all over the country right now who know my order well. They were my interns at one point – and know that if they made the run, they got free “whatever you want” on my Starbucks gold card. Oh, and they also learned that in the United States, these kinds of stories are always a hit.

When we stayed late for trainings or station meetings – there were always boxes of coffee there too. By then, 9 hours into a shift… you’re pretty sick of coffee, and your stomach is a mess from all the acid… but you still drink.

Seattle to me will always be where Pearl Jam came from – but, after 20 years in the TV news business,  I wanted to pay homage to the first of the many Starbucks I’ve sat in, ran through, drove through, had meetings in, ate in, worked in… and also was introduced to many singer/songwriters in for the first time. It’s also the place that introduced me to Kind Bars. Yummm… often my breakfast and lunch for weeks. I eventually ended up buying them by the case from Amazon.

Starbucks is also reliable. No matter where you’re driving across the United States, you know what they’ll have when you stop there. You know the coffee will be good and there will be snacks. A variety of them. Have you had the new sous vide egg bites. Holy cow those are good. Thank you, Starbucks, for finally making something delicious that’s not wrapped in bread.

I don’t normally eat at chain restaurants, but as someone who fueled herself on coffee for her entire career – I was happy to be in Seattle to see where it all started.

PS: I’m looking forward to going back to Seattle this summer. The new Pike Place MarketFront expansion opens June 29. The expansion will return farmers and producers to the site. 30k square feet of open public space, a public plaza and viewing deck with expansive views of the Olympic Mountains, Mount Rainier and Puget Sound!

Speaking of NCAA Basketball Schools… Go Marquette!

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Picture courtesy of Marquette University 

Is your college in the big dance?

Mine is!

The Marquette Golden Eagles play University of South Carolina Friday, March 17.

While we’re talking about college… I just stumbled upon this on my Mac today.

Tim Cigelske is a Marquette University graduate and teacher. He teaches in the College of Communication.

Here’s a beautiful piece Tim wrote about me in Marquette Magazine a few years ago. Thank you, Tim.

The article was written when I was an executive producer at NBC. Since then, I created my own company. I am now a media coach and a public speaking trainer.

Tim also freelances on the side for some blogs and websites… so if you’re looking for a good writer with an awesome sense of humor… it’s him.

Go Marquette!

Screenshot 2016-09-14 16.14.05

ALUMNI PROFILE: KATHRYN JANICEK

By: Tim Cigelske

Kathryn Janicek does more by 4 a.m. than many people accomplish all day.

As executive producer for NBC Chicago’s morning TV show, her workday starts shortly after midnight

, when she opens her email and begins planning the news for more than 200,000 daily viewers.

No longer does breaking news start on the air. Now, she has to make sure stories are tweeted, posted on Facebook, and followed up on and updated on the website. That’s in addition to deciding where her reporters will travel and what items her writers will craft.

She doesn’t mind the relentless pace. In fact, she thrives on it.

“This really is a lifestyle,”she says. “Not just a job.”

Few in the news media have adapted faster to this rapidly changing landscape than Janicek, Comm ’98. She received an Emmy for outstanding achievement for interactivity and the Illinois Broadcasters Association’s Silver Dome Award for best use of new media.

Taking risks and blazing trails is nothing new for Janicek, who displayed these same characteristics at Marquette. She wanted to be hands-on from the beginning, which is why she chose Marquette’s broadcasting program and Milwaukee’s internship potential after being accepted into prestigious journalism programs at schools such as the University of Missouri.

“The moment I met her, I could see her exhibition of curiosity,” says Dr. Michael Havice, professor of broadcast and electronic communication in the Diederich College. “She wanted to achieve everything at once.”

Havice noticed that Janicek sought out new or challenging ways to tell stories, as well as opportunities for personal and professional development. This included interning at WISN Channel 12 during her freshman year and working as an overnight associate producer at WITI Channel 6 during her junior year. She also was the College of Communication’s president and responsible for organizing a memorial for Chris Farley when he died during Christmas break in 1997.

Ï really wanted to be in charge,: Janicek says. “I definitely went toward the producing and management role.”

Her experience paid off immediately after graduation, when she landed a job as a morning producer for the CBS affiliate in Champaign, Ill. Janicek was destined for bigger markets and arrived in Chicago 3 1/2 years ago as a producer at WGN, which led to her current role at NBC as executive producer of the morning show.

Today, Janicek relishes the responsibility of preparing her viewers for the day. She admits she has little downtime, but that’s just fine with her.

“The newsroom is an incredible place,” she said. “I can’t wait for Mondays.”

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