While the national campaign focuses on securing national media coverage, Foster Care Month also provides a great opportunity for pitching positive foster care stories to local media. During May, media in your area may be more open to featuring human-interest stories that profile members of the community, such as inspiring foster care alumni. Many print, radio and television outlets have regular segments spotlighting “people making a difference” in the area. You can present them with brief profiles of foster parents, mentors, social workers and others who contribute to the lives of local youth.

Remember, there are many different issue-based “months” out there. “May is Foster Care Month” will probably not be considered newsworthy by a reporter. You will have to build a case for why foster care is an issue of concern and interest to members of your community all year round. Be sure to highlight how foster care affects the audiences served by the media outlets you approach for support. The core messages, fact sheets and other resources provided in this Toolkit will give you a solid base for developing your own localized pitch materials. In Tools you will find resources created for the national campaign that can also be adapted for use at the local level.

Five Ideas to Get You Started:

1. Visit the Online Newsroom.

1. Pick (and prepare) your spokespeople. Compile a list of a few local experts, foster care alumni, foster parents and others making a difference in the lives of youth in care in your community. Think about people who either have had previous interactions with the media or have been properly trained to do so. Develop a brief bio or profile for each spokesperson. Work closely with each of your spokespeople before connecting them to an interested reporter. They should understand the scope of the proposed story, how to handle difficult questions and the core messages to emphasize during the interview.

1. Write a Letter to the Editor about foster care. Most daily and weekly newspapers have a special section for letters from local citizens. These letters are particularly effective if sent by a community leader, foster parent, volunteer or foster care alum. (You can offer to ghostwrite the letter for them.). Keep your content brief (10 sentences maximum). Try to convey the year-round needs of youth in foster care. Mention that May is National Foster Care Month and include a public call-to-action message that encourages others to get involved. Send these letters to your newspapers by mid-April to leverage the heightened awareness of Foster Care Month. Check out Tools for sample letters to the editor.

1. Write an Op-Ed about foster care. An op-ed (opinion-editorial) is written by a member of the community with a particular point of view to express. Most daily newspapers have an Editorial or Opinion Page containing op-eds, many of which are written by syndicated or staff columnists. They must be topical, timely, well written and must clearly a state a strong opinion. Check out Tools for more information on tips for op-eds and for some samples to guide you.

Tools: 

·         Core Messages

·         Creating a Press List

·         Reaching Out to the Media

·         Sample Calendar Listing

·         Sample Media Timeline

·         Sample Press Advisory

·         Sample News Release

·         Sample Letter to the Editor – from a foster parent

·         Sample Letter to the Editor – from an advocate

·         Sample Letter to the Editor – from a foster care alum

·         Tips for Op-Eds

·         Sample Op-Ed – from a foster parent

·         Sample Op-Ed – from a foster care alum

·         Guide for Media: Working with Youth in Foster Care

·         State Fact Sheets about Children in Foster Care