Minnesota Statewide Media Project

Recommended this month:  "Earned" media around fall lobby week, with the potential to use a trusted messenger as a hook. CCL’s coordinated lobbying efforts are often an effective hook for local media. We never disclose to the media what Members of Congress or their staff say in meetings — confidentiality is crucial. But we can and do tell reporters about our own advocacy efforts. Note: Be mindful about if local media would be helpful or harmful for your relationship with your particular congressional office. Consult with your chapter leader/MOC liaison. If it’s helpful, then here are some steps you could take this month to generate local media coverage of your virtual lobby meetings:

• Send a local press release. Let local journalists know that your group is meeting with lawmakers by sending them a press release before the meeting. Download and personalize our new Local Press Release Template, tailored to this year’s Lobby Week. By adding your details and sending the press release to reporters, TV stations and radio stations, you give them the chance to do a story on your lobby efforts.

• 🌟Think about your trusted messenger! Check with your chapter leader about scheduled lobby meetings. If your lobby team has a trusted messenger participating in some way (joining the meeting, sending a video, sending a letter, etc.), this could be a great hook for media. Ask the trusted messenger if they are comfortable being mentioned in your press outreach materials around the lobby meeting. 

  1. ✅If so, be sure your press release includes their name, role in the community, and the general message they are bringing to the Member of Congress. (Ex: Local business owner Jane Smith is joining the meeting with Rep. Name to raise the issue of energy affordability in our community.)

  2. 🚫If not, do not breach their confidentiality by sharing their name or any details with the media. Prioritize relationships over publicity, every time!

• Nudge reporters afterward. After the meeting, send a follow-up email to any local reporter contacts who have not responded to you, letting them know the meeting has taken place and giving them one more chance to cover the story. If you still don’t hear back, check in one final time by email or phone.

• Own the opinion pages. Lobby meetings also create a great opportunity to write letters to the editor (LTEs) or op-eds.

  1. Angle 1: Write about the same topics you’re raising with Congress. Submit an op-ed about the Fix Our Forests Act or about the need for permitting reform. Templates for both of these topics are available on our Op-Ed Templates page of CCL Community.

FOFA: Appropriate FOFA media messaging: The Fix Our Forests Act has passed the Senate Ag Committee 🎉 and we have updated the FOFA op-ed template to reflect this latest development. There’s FOFA messaging on a new policy page. Note for Minnesota: Senators Klobuchar and Smith split votes on FOFA on the Ag Committee. Rather than asking Sen. Smith to support this bill so soon after she voted no in committee, you could do an LTE or Op-ed thanking Senator Klobuchar for her yes vote, do not mention Smith, and reinforce why the bill is important. 

Permitting Reform: This is the primary ask for all members of Congress at the opcoming Lobby Day. We can set the stage with local media for why PR needs to happen--it helps accelerate clean energy deployment, meet our nation's growing energy demand, and reduce costs.

Download the permitting reform op-ed template here: Families can’t afford to wait: We need reliable and cheap clean energy

• 2. Angle 2: A public thank-you. Write a short letter noting that the MOC recently met with your chapter, as part of a nationwide lobbying push by concerned citizens across the country. Express your appreciation for their time and reiterate the importance of the issues you presented. (Remember not to reveal what the MOC or staff themselves said — we always respect their confidentiality.) Get some inspiration from this roundup of other volunteers’ post-lobbying media.

CCL Minnesota Current Media Topics