Sound advice for dealing with the media

Going through some old notes I found the following list. My mother-in-law was a winner of the President's Community Volunteer Award a couple of years ago (the last one on the list, alphabetically), and this was the list of tips given by the Points of Light Foundation to the winners for dealing with the media:

• Be honest.
• Be yourself.
• Answer the question that you wish they'd ask.
• Keep answers concise and paint a vivid picture (use anecdotes, positive language, and comparisons).
• You are in control, so make your point.
• If you disagree with something the reporter says, speak up immediately.
• Prepare three 25-word sentences that convey your overall message.
• Remember who YOU are representing.
• Don't say anything that you wouldn't want to see in print or played over and over again in a soundbite.
• There is no such thing as "off the record".
• You don't have to have all the answers.