Frequently Asked Questions

What is covered in the media training?
The 2-hour training covers the fundamentals of generating "earned media" for progressive events and issues. The topics covered include the fundamentals and important of earned media strategies, how to identify your media resources, how to create and contribute to media friendly events, how to pitch reporters and get them to cover your issues and causes, and how to get follow-up coverage.

These are the most important steps in helping progressives take back the media. By training and developing a country full of activists like yourself that can force the media to cover our events, we can help build a last progressive voice for change.

Who should participate?

The training is designed for anyone who wants to help get the media to cover more progressive issues and campaigns in their communities. You don't have to be a media expert...you only have to have a desire to see more fair coverage. On the other hand, if you have done media organizing before, this is also a great opportunity to come and help other activists learn more about the fundamentals of earned media.

When is the training happening?

The house party trainings are all happening on the evening of Thursday, January 17th from 6:45pm to 9:00pm. We are currently accepting registrations to start house parties and on January 7th, we will list where all the house parties and individuals can begin joining house party trainings in their communities.

Where are the training takes place?

The national media training is taking place in house parties hosted by individuals like you. All you need is a space that can fit between 5 and 20 people and the ability to watch a training DVD, join a live webast, and print out guest packets for your participants.

To find a house party training in your community, use our national map to click on your state or enter your zip code and find a house party training in your area.

How can I get involved?

There are three ways you can get involved: you can use our national map to click on your state or enter your zip code and find a house party training in your area. You can host your own media training house party. And finally, you can spread the word about the event to progressive organizations, friends, family and co-workers.

Does it cost anything?

The national media training is free for both hosts and participants. The only cost as a host is printing out the guest packets for everyone RSVP'ed for your event. CPL Action Network and our partners will provide the training DVDs for all the house party trainings.

Why is there such a specific agenda for the training?
The 2-hour event gives everyone a short amount of time to cover a lot of topics. In order to get the most out of the experience, we've designed a very tight schedule that each host will be responsible for monitoring. Each part of the training is critical to getting all the information necessary. We even have extensive post-training materials for participants who want to get even more information.

What is earned media?
Events are called “earned media” events because you have to work to get coverage. Sometimes “earned media” is called “free media” because you do not specifically pay for the coverage, like you would if you bought an ad.  However, many people prefer the term “earned media” because there is a lot of work involved in actually receiving the coverage.

If I decide to host, how will I know who is coming to my house party?
You will receive an e-mail notification every time someone signs up for your house party.  This will include the participant’s name and contact information.  If you have additional information to pass on to participants, you can certainly contact them, but it is not essential.  By registering for your house party, they will automatically receive all of the information you provided about the location of your house party and any specific instructions.  Once your house party has reached the maximum number of guests, your house party will be closed.

The groups that are going to be doing the most outreach for the house party trainings are the Center for Progressive Leadership Action Network, MoveOn.org Political Action, True Majority Action, and ProgressNow.

Can I invite people to my house party myself?
Absolutely!  We encourage you to invite friends, colleagues, and other progressives who you know to join your house party.  However, please make sure that they also sign up to attend your house party at www.cplaction.org so that we have an accurate count of who is attending your house party.

What if I haven't received any emails about guests coming to my party?
One problem that frequently occurs is that the "Spam Filter" in a lot of email programs will catch some of the emails about the Media Impact Training. Please check your Junk Folder or Spam Filter to make sure that emails are not getting caught there. Its also possible that no one has registered for your event yet. You can look up your house party on the national map and when you get to your state (which will be up on the 7th), you can look at your house party and see if anyone has applied.

What is my role as a host in this training?
Our goal is to minimize the amount of responsibility that falls to our house party hosts, recognizing the significant contribution that you are already making by volunteering your time as well as your homes for this training. That being said, our hosts play a critical role in ensuring that the training runs smoothly and effectively. Your primary role is to provide the Guest Packets, take attendance, and make sure that the evening runs on-time and the guests move from one portion of the evening to the next.

Please review and familiarize yourself in advance of the training with the host materials that you can download from our website.  These include a detailed agenda for the evening, instructions for the different sections, including special responsibilities for you as the host, and tips on how to be an effective facilitator. 

What is the CPL Action Network?
The Center for Progressive Leadership Action Network is the sister organization of the Center for Progressive Leadership.  The Action Network connects emerging and established leaders to create a community of progressive political leaders to work on key progressive issues, advocate for progressive causes, lead and support progressive campaigns, and build the America of our dreams. 

The Center for Progressive Leadership runs training programs for activists in every state and helps link organizers, volunteers, campaign staff, and community leaders to direct action.

Can other people get a copy of the training DVD?
Yes. Individuals can get a copy of the Media Impact DVD by contacting the Center for Progressive Leadership. They cost $5 plus shipping & handling and are available to everyone.

How many other house parties are taking place in my area?
On January 7th, you can check the CPL Action Network website to see a map of the location of all the house parties taking place across the country.