Feeling safe when speaking to the media
We know that speaking to the media can be scary. Opening up and sharing your story with the world is a difficult thing to do.
First, remember: there is no pressure! If you don’t feel ready to share your story, you don’t have to.
Refugee Festival Scotland is a celebration, so speaking to the media about it should be fun! We hope to see lots of exciting, positive, community-focused stories in the news this June.
If you do want to speak to the media, here are some tips to help make it as enjoyable an experience as possible.
- Think about whether you’d prefer to speak to a radio station, newspaper or TV.
- Do some research. Speak to journalists who you know are already writing positive, well-researched stories about refugee communities.
- Ask for questions in advance. Even if the journalist can’t give you exact questions, they should be able to tell you roughly what they want you to talk about.
- Would you prefer to stay anonymous? Are you comfortable sharing your name and face?
- Practice! Ask a friend to help you or contact our Comms Team who will be happy to support.
- You don’t have to answer anything you don’t want to answer, and you can stop the interview at any time.
- After the interview, take time to do something nice for yourself. Have a cup of tea, call a friend, watch a TV show.
- Give us a call if there’s anything you want to talk about.
Our Communications Team can support you throughout. We can:
- Help you decide if you want to do a media interview
- Connect you with journalists
- Help you run through questions before the interview
- Help you decide what you want to talk about
- Be there during the interview to support you (if you want us to be)
- Debrief with you after the interview
Want to find out more? Contact our Communications Team
