Transcription of Strategic Communication Practices
1 Strategic Communication Practices : A Toolkit for Police Executives Darrel W. Stephens Julia Hill Sheldon Greenberg Strategic Communication Practices : A Toolkit for Police Executives Darrel W. Stephens Julia Hill Sheldon Greenberg Contents This project was supported by a Cooperative Agreement 2008-CK-WX-K008 awarded by the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, Department of Justice. The opinions contained herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the Department of Justice.
2 References to specific agencies, companies, products, or services should not be considered an endorsement by the author(s) or the Department of Justice. Rather, the references are illustrations to supplement discussion of the issues. The Internet references cited in this publication were valid as of the original date of this publication. Given that URLs and websites are in constant flux, neither the author(s) nor the COPS Office can vouch for their current validity. ISBN: 978-1-935676-41-6 September 2011 Contents Contents About the COPS Office.
3 4 Letter from the Director .. 5 CHAPTER I The Police Communication Imperative .. 7 Communications Issues .. 8 Crime .. 8 Police Effectiveness .. 9 Public Image and Perceptions of the Police .. 10 Policing Approach .. 10 Police Misconduct .. 11 Budget Staffing .. 11 Terrorism .. 13 Immigration .. 13 Influencing Behavior .. 14 Transparency .. 15 Essential Audiences .. 15 Elected Officials .. 17 Community Leaders .. 17 Neighborhood Leaders .. 17 Public Interest Groups .. 17 Non-English Speaking Communities.
4 18 Faith Communities .. 18 Employees .. 18 Communication Strategies .. 19 CHAPTER II Where and How People Get Information .. 21 The Media Landscape .. 22 The Evolution of the Media in the Digital Age .. 22 How People Access, Use, and Disseminate Information .. 24 Declines in Trust and Credibility .. 28 Viewership, Readership, and Listenership .. 29 Print Media .. 29 Television .. 32 Radio .. 34 The Online Migration .. 35 Where Do We Go from Here? .. 38 [ 1 ] Contents Strategic Communication Practices : A Toolkit for Police Executives CHAPTER III Developing Strategic Communication Plans.
5 39 A Strategic Approach .. 39 STEP 1: Research and Situation Analysis .. 40 STEP 2: Determining Goals and Objectives .. 43 STEP 3: Target Publics .. 45 STEP 4: Communication Strategies .. 47 STEP 5: Messages .. 48 STEP 6: Tactics and Implementation .. 51 STEP 7: Evaluation and Measurement .. 54 CHAPTER IV The Chief/Sheriff (CEO) Role in Effective Communications .. 57 The Communications plan .. 57 Modeling the Behavior .. 59 The CEO as Communicator .. 59 Crime .. 60 Arrests .. 60 Use of Force.
6 60 Death of an Officer/Serious Injury .. 60 Misconduct .. 61 Policy .. 61 The CEO and the Communications Staff .. 62 Resourcing Public Affairs .. 63 CHAPTER V Communication Tools .. 65 Traditional Tools .. 65 The News Media .. 65 Written Release .. 65 News Conference .. 66 Op-Ed Pieces .. 67 Newspaper Columns .. 67 Radio/Television Talk Shows .. 67 Responding to Requests for Information .. 68 Community Presentations, Speeches, and Meetings .. 68 Reports .. 69 Newsletters .. 71 [ 2 ] Strategic Communication Practices : A Toolkit for Police Executives Contents Brochures.
7 72 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) .. 72 Cable Television .. 73 The New Tools .. 74 Departmental Web Page .. 75 Blogging .. 77 Social Media .. 78 E-Mail .. 82 Wikipedia .. 84 Community Notification Programs .. 85 CHAPTER VI Crisis Communications: Planning and Execution .. 87 Crisis as Opportunity .. 88 When Crisis Strikes: Strike First .. 91 The Role of the Chief .. 93 Messaging .. 96 Preparing Spokespeople .. 98 Target Publics .. 99 Houston, We Have a Problem: Manage Issues to Prevent Crises.
8 100 Situational Analysis .. 102 Drafting a Workable Crisis Communication plan .. 103 CHAPTER VII Conclusion: Going Forward .. 107 References .. 111 Appendixes .. 117 Appendix A: Executive Briefing Participants Milwaukee and Ft . Worth .. 117 Appendix B: Developing the Core Message .. 119 About the Authors .. 121 [ 3 ] Letter from the Director Strategic Communication Practices : A Toolkit for Police Executives About the CoPs office The Office Of Community Oriented Policing Services (the COPS Office) is the component of the Department of Justice responsible for advancing the practice of community policing by the nation s state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies through information and grant resources.
9 The community policing philosophy promotes organizational strategies that support the systematic use of partnerships and problem-solving techniques to proactively address the immediate conditions that give rise to public safety issues such as crime, social disorder, and fear of crime. In its simplest form, community policing is about building relationships and solving problems. The COPS Office awards grants to state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies to hire and train community policing professionals, acquire and deploy cutting-edge crime-fighting technologies, and develop and test innovative policing strategies.
10 The COPS Office funding also provides training and technical assistance to community members and local government leaders and all levels of law enforcement. Since 1994, the COPS Office has invested more than $16 billion to add community policing officers to the nation s streets, enhance crime fighting technology, support crime prevention initiatives, and provide training and technical assistance to help advance community policing. More than 500,000 law enforcement personnel, community members, and government leaders have been trained through COPS Office-funded training organizations.
