Informing, Influencing `Odar' Media

[Yervant1]

Informing, Influencing `Odar' Media

Editorial
30 April 2014


In early April Armenians living in cities where they have activist
communities held demonstrations to protest Turkish complicity in the
attack on the mostly-Armenian town of Kessab in northern Syria.

Such a demonstration was held also in Toronto on April 3. More than
three-hundred Armenians-almost half of them under 30-converged on the
downtown address of the Turkish Consulate to condemn Turkey.

The Armenian Youth Federation (AYF), which organized the rally,
deserves our congratulations for a job well done.

Carrying Canadian and Armenian flags, the passionate but disciplined
crowd delivered a simple and strong message: Turkey should stop
facilitating attacks by extremist foreign fighters on Kessab and in
other parts of Syria. Despite provocation by a small group of Grey
Wolves counter-demonstrators, Armenians remained on message. A woman
from the Grey Wolves danced in glee to draw the Armenians into a
confrontation, but failed to do so. Armenians did not approach the
security cordon, which separated them from the Turkbeijan agent
provocateurs.

The AYF had informed local media of the rally, but there was almost no
media presence and none from the city's highly competitive six
dailies.

Why not? Why the apparent indifference to the plight of 6,000
Syrian-Armenians by Toronto's media? Several demonstration attendees
muttered that the media are not interested, unless there is the
potential of violence. Overstated, but with some truth. There could be
a dozen reasons why reporters were not there, none of them the fault
of the AYF. Getting coverage for protest rallies are among the most
difficult, perhaps because such demonstrations often question the
status quo which the establishment media and business like to
maintain. As well, some news stories-no matter how well pitched-are
not covered because editors might believe they run counter to the
nation's foreign policy objectives. Armenia's foreign policy runs
counter to NATO's wishes and mainstream media are hostile to Syria's
Bashar Assad. Much of the Western mainstream media give a pass to the
extremists fighting Assad, hoping the former would bring down Syria's
leader.

A major aim in why we will commemorate the centenary of the Genocide
next year is to draw the world's attention to Turkey's crime and
denial. To do so, we need positive media coverage. If we don't rouse
the interest of the media, we will have failed.

How do we get the media's attention for the tragedy that was
perpetrated upon the Armenian nation one-hundred years ago? It's a
tough assignment.

Newspapers are mostly about news or something new. In the city room,
last week's news is as dead as a doornail.

Here are some tips which should help attract media interest to the
century-old tragedy:

1. Personalize the Genocide. Find the children of survivors who can tell
the story of their parents and relatives in a few but powerful words.
Approach media outlets in the area where the person you want to profile
resides and drive the local angle.
2. Find a link between the Genocide and the community you live in. For
example, talk about non-Armenian citizens who spoke about the Genocide at
the time and perhaps helped Armenians. Honor these friends of Armenians.
3. In the months prior to April 24, 2015 invite media, particularly
neighborhood publications, to events you are organizing. Unlike previous
years, the whole year is open to coverage.
4. Try to inject something current in your articles and releases.
5. The cliché doesn't exaggerate: a picture is worth a thousand words.
Lend media some of the graphic Genocide images. Send photos whose
authenticity can't be challenged. Don't send, for example, fictional photos
such as the line of crucified Armenians from the `Ravished Armenia' silent
movie or the famous painting of the molehill of supposedly Armenian skulls.
6. Don't assume journalists know about the Genocide. With the decline of
mainstream media, many journalists know far less about international
politics than their predecessors. Armenian information officers should
spoon-feed the media the facts of the Genocide and Ankara's denialist
stand. Provide unimpeachable sources-in print or on the Web.
7. The focus should be on the government of Turkey, not Turks. Don't
mislead by making the Genocide a story about religious differences...In these
days of extreme religious sensitivities and obsession with political
correctness, the Christian/Muslim narrative would not only present an
incomplete picture but also be a self-defeating exercise.
8. Armenians telling the story of the Genocide should recognize
righteous Turks who helped Armenians or contemporary Turks (Ragip Zarakolu,
Fethiye Ã=87etin, Orhan Pamuk, Taner Akcam, et al) who speak on behalf of
Armenians.
9. The campaign to inform the media should start long before April 24,
2015. Folders containing a variety of news releases and photos (or compiled
electronically) should be sent to the media. The news releases would be
about Armenians; their history; celebrated Armenians; the millennial
homeland now occupied by Turkey; the Genocide; the slaying of Armenian
writers and priests; the acts and words of the murderous Young Turk
triumvirate; the brazen denialist policy of Turkey; the declarations of the
International Association of Genocide Scholars; quotes by famous
(non-Armenian) people about the Genocide... They should not be longer than
300 words.
10. Put the Genocide in universal context. Point out that it was the
precursor of the Holocaust... Include the famous Hitler quote. Mention other
modern genocides. Point out that the Genocide is also relevant because it's
causing instability in the Southern Caucasus.
11. Have a designated person/committee as the source for centennial
information.
12. The news releases should stick to the facts and avoid
emotive/sensational words. Use adjectives and adverbs sparingly. They
should be grammatically correct and succinct: short sentences, short
paragraphs.
13. Don't write a sob story. Let the facts tell the story.
14. Anticipate the editors' resistance that `it's an old story' and
pre-empt it with sharply-written and eye-catching headlines, text and
photos. Make sure the first sentence of the piece, called `lede' in
journalese, `hooks' the reader.
15. When writing about the tragedy, remember that readers need to see a
shape to the story, a completion, something hopeful to look forward to.
Tell readers what Armenians have done and are doing to force Turkey to come
clean. Speak of how refugee communities rose from the ashes to not only
survive the tragedy, but to go on to thrive all over the world as good
citizens in the countries that accepted them. Praise these countries for
their hospitality.

With your help, 2015 should be an interesting year for the Armenian nation.

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