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● Introduction & Index ● What is PR ● Job Expectations ● Types of Media ● Building Relationships ● Media, Hams & FCC Rules ● The Basic News Release ● Interviews and Live ● Making your own show ● Easy P.R. ● Public Service Events ● Piggy-back to Events ● Pictures NOW! ● P.R. Research Aids ● Making Friends ● ARES® PIO ● Final Exam Information Next Page

3. Clubs Clubs often appoint or elect their own PIOs whose primary responsibility is to promote the club. They may tangentially promote all of Amateur Radio, but their focus is on the club and there is no way for others to know who is or isn’t a Club PIO at any point in time. Because club PIOs often change jobs frequently, there is a critical need for incoming PIOs to quickly let local media know who is now in the role of PIO - and these changes can confuse reporters. Building relationships and trust with media outlets often takes years while these positions can change annually. 4. ARRL PIO The ARRL PIO is the anchor of our PR efforts. ARRL PIOs are appointed by the Section Manager and serve at their pleasure. They may come from the ranks of club PIOs, ARES or self-volunteer for the position, but their job is representing all of Amateur Radio. Their names are kept on a database at ARRL HQ in Newington, and these are the first people we look to when something major is happening in the area. Usually they have some type of journalistic or media experience, but not always. More important than their personal history is being active, available and highly motivated. Wearing the blue ARRL badge as a PIO is a responsibility. It is the promise that you will “be there” when something happens and be our voice. In return, the ARRL is committed to providing these PIOs with all the materials and aid we can. You may have noted that we wrote ”their job is representing all of Amateur Radio.” That is a fundamental shift from what you might think. Most organizational PIOs are directed to represent and promote their organization itself. But long ago, Hiram P. Maxim, founder of the ARRL, made a policy very clear that the job of the ARRL was to go far beyond self-promotion. We were to promote Amateur Radio - all of it! He had seen many self-promoting organizations come and go and reasoned that if the ARRL promoted all of ham radio that everything else would fall into place too. 100 years later he seems to have been right! Hiram P. Maxim