I agree with Jim Slade's comments. And as an almost 76 year old private
pilot now flying under the sport pilot rules, I also have some
familiarity with news gathering and communications. I urge all of you to
read Jim's post and think about it. However, I'd like to discuss just
one point he made. [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
"Journalism is NOT PR."
Jim is right. However PR does play a part in journalism. Most
"unfortunate" news stories about aviation are caused by a lack of
familiarity with aviation which plays well with a latent fear of the
unknown. Many reporters (including newspaper, radio, and TV) have very
little familiarly with aviation in general and especially with general
aviation and those little airplanes. Thus, in the heat of reporting a
fast breaking story, they are ill prepared to know who and what to ask
and to properly evaluate the answers.
However, each of us can do something about that. There are several
alternatives:
1. Join EAA and/or AOPA. Both organizations work hard to reach out to
news gathering sources so they will get the story right. And both
encourage their members in various ways to do the same in direct and
indirect ways. One good example is EAA's Young Eagles program. Another
is AOPA's support materials for organizing an airport open house.
2. Take personal responsibility to do something about improving the
aviation background for the local news gathers in your area. Write
emails and letters to the media people. Put your anger aside and provide
positive information to help them do a better job. Offer them a guided
tour of your airport. Or even a demo flight if you have an aircraft
available. Introduce them to the airport and it's people -- many of whom
probably are the people these news gathers are trying to reach. Then,
once you have made contact, stay in touch. Help them reach the right
people when there is breaking news and suggest story lines when the news
is slow.
3. Support your local airport events and encourage your airport to do
more to bring non-pilots to the airport. Aviation's PR problem is as
much with the public in general as it is with the media.
Each of us should do more if we want to continue to have the freedom to
fly just because we can.
John Roach
N 2427H
