Top editors from the leading risk management publications will join forces to provide a behind-the-scenes look at how journalists cover the buyer community and the wider commercial insurance business, during a seminar next month at the Risk and Insurance Management Society's annual conference.

The session–RMG 101, “Meet The Insurance Press”–will take place on Monday, April 30, from 1:45-to-3:15 p.m. at the RIMS conference in New Orleans.

The four editors will offer advice on how buyers can establish productive, mutually beneficial relationships with the press, while explaining the potential risks involved when dealing with reporters, and how to mitigate them.

Sam Friedman, Editor In Chief of National Underwriter, will moderate the discussion among his colleagues–Regis Coccia, Editor of Business Insurance; Jack Roberts, Editor In Chief of Risk & Insurance; and Bill Coffin, Publisher & Editorial Director of Risk Management.

Among the topics:

o What are “the rules” when dealing with the media? What's the difference between speaking “off the record” as opposed to “on background.” How does a risk manager establish the ground rules before speaking to a reporter?

o What is the risk manager's role in getting the organization's message out to the public via the press–particularly during a crisis? What is the standard operating procedure for risk managers working with the company's senior management in dealing with the media? What coordination should there be with the firm's public relations department?

o How can being proactive by cultivating contacts in the media benefit an organization? What are the advantages of becoming a trusted source for reporters–even if only on background? How does one pitch a story to the press?

o What are the potential risks of being uncooperative with the media? What are the downsides of excluding the press from key news events involving an organization?

o Is there a difference between a public and a private company in managing the risks of press contact in today's Sarbanes-Oxley environment? What new exposures has the explosion of new media–such as blogs–created for a company?

Throughout the session, the editors will pose questions to the audience about their own experience and standard operating procedures when dealing with the media, as well as turn the tables by inviting attendees to question the press for a change.

To register for the RIMS conference and/or sign up for this particular session, go to www.RIMS.org/RIMS2007.

Special Reports /

Buyers Get To Grill The Insurance Press At RIMS Conference

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