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PRO ANNUAL 2018
you handle yourself in those trickier interview situations can have a large impact on your reputation. It’s much easier to convey the good news - to talk about that late braking overtake that led to your race win - but knowing how to announce bad news in a good way is a vital skill for anybody who will ever have to face a journalist after an uncomfortable outcome. It’s difficult to explain that you dropped out of a podium position because your engine gave out, but there is a way to say it without throwing anybody under the bus. The way you handle yourself in those tricker interview situations can have a huge impact on your reputation.
“It’s important for everyone in sport these days to manage their reputation” It’s important for everyone in sport these days to manage their reputation; that’s why Formula 1 teams have all those press officers you see holding voice recorders in the background of
interviews. It was a one-woman job back when I was the press officer for Jordan Grand Prix, but the media landscape is very different 25 years later. Nowadays we live in a world of 24-hour rolling news and a world where social media can play as big a part as the mainstream media in shaping reputations. That takes a lot more managing. On the plus side though, it also adds up to a lot more exposure that’s potentially out there for the taking. Unlike the Formula 1 drivers, you may not have the advantage of a press officer to help you find your way through the media maze but there’s a lot that drivers can do for themselves. You could start by building a relationship with the journalists who cover your series. Making a personal connection with some key media in the paddock can pay dividends in the long run – especially in those tricky interview situations. A quick chat in the paddock might be all it takes. Much as I’d love to, I don’t have the time to catch up with all 120+ drivers racing on the BTCC package over the course of a race weekend. The drivers who approach me have a better chance of shaping my perceptions of them and getting their stories told. It stands to reason, if we don’t know about you, we can’t talk about you! Make contact with your local media too – local newspapers and radio stations are always