Communicating with the Public
This unit outlines strategies for effective communication with the public. We will focus on written forms, but if you are interested in other forms of engaging the public, these strategies should also be useful. We’ll encourage you to develop your own voice and style; explain the importance of building and maintaining relationships with media professionals; help you identify points of entry into public conversations; and get you started with pitching your public-facing work.
OBJECTIVES
Understand differences between academic and public-facing writing
Think about different audiences you would like to reach
Learn to work with editors and other media professionals
Develop a list of outlets you would like to pitch
How to Write For…
Religion News Service (opinion section)
WAYS TO LEARN
We’ve designed this training curriculum so you can get the entire content of a lesson just by listening to that lesson’s podcast episode on the audio player below. You can listen all at once, or click on the “list” icon to use chapter markers to navigate to a specific part of the conversation.
If you prefer a multimedia approach to learning, you can watch a slideshow version of this content.
You’re also welcome to simply read through the transcript for this episode.
However you choose to learn, we encourage you to pause and reflect when prompted to do so, and to take notes to share with your fellow trainees, if and as that’s possible for you.
And don’t forget to check the top of this page for essential resources, and the bottom of the page for additional resources.
LISTEN & LEARN
GUEST VOICES
WATCH & LEARN
READ & LEARN
Read the transcript of this episode’s podcast.
APPLIED LEARNING: Identify Ports
Start developing a list of ports….the platforms, venues, or media in which you want to place your work.
Given your area of research and the topics you might want to engage the public on, what are some of the publications you might be interested in pitching?
A good place to start is to think about what platforms are the audiences you want to reach already engaged with: What are they reading? What forms of social media do they prefer?
Another way to think about this is: which publications publish public scholarship that you admire: think about tone and style, and whether there might be particular editors you would like to work with.
If you aren’t sure where to start, listen to Program Coordinator Brook Wilensky-Lanford’s rundown of religion-focused publications on the podcast; see the summary of these publications in the lesson overview; or visit their submission guidelines via the links at the top of this page.
Come up with a list of ports and brainstorm how you might begin to build a relationship with these outlets. Are you already reading the publication? If not, that would be a good place to start! Have you checked their website for submission guidelines? Do you follow their editors or writers on Twitter?
DISCUSSION PROMPTS
We encourage you to discuss with your colleagues:
Thinking expansively about your expertise, what topics (“boats”) are you excited to address?
What audiences do you want to reach? Which venues (“ports”) are they already reading?
How might you begin to build relationships with editors at these “ports”?
What kind of a writing style do you want to bring to your work?
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Bond, “Vox Populi”
Kelly J. Baker, “How to Craft a Pitch,” Chronicle Community, June 7, 2017
N. A. Mansour, “Who Do Historians Write For?”, Contingent Magazine, May 28, 2022
Lynne Gerber, “Pink and Purple Church” and “AIDS and the Blessings of Staying”