How is the News Bureau Different from other PR organizations?

Thank you to all who attended the first OKC News Bureau meeting of 2009. We had a great turnout and a wonderful presentation from the American Indian Cultural Center and Museum! I will be posting photos as soon as I have them.

I have been getting a lot of questions on what makes the OKC News Bureau different from PRSA and IABC. I am happy to address this question, as the News Bureau is filling a very different need than other organizations in the city. PRSA and IABC are education-based organizations, while the OKC News Bureau is a media-relations based organization.

PRSA and IABC
Purpose: The Public Relations Society of America and the International Association of Business Communicators both have active chapters here in OKC. These are both outstanding organizations. They offer many educational opportunities, seminars and conferences for members. These organizations are meant to help you grow as become a more effective business professional.

Activities: Both of these organizations offer many activities. They meet monthly over lunch, and offer seminars and learning opportunities in between.

Cost: Both of these organizations have membership fees that cover chapter dues and activities.

OKC News Bureau:
Purpose: The OKC News Bureau will not offer any sort of educational opportunities. The purpose of this group is to place Oklahoma City and its activities in the media. We will be sharing story leads with members and connecting people who might want to partner together on a project to garner more publicity. Through collaboration, we want to see Oklahoma City and its activities in the national and local media more frequently. Because the more positive publicity we can garner for our city, the more successful we will all be!

Activities:
This group will only meet a few times a year (between 2 and 4). Each time we will try to give members a "sneak peek" of a new location in town. However, the main activity happens in between meetings over email and through joint media relations efforts.

Cost:
There is no cost. This is a free resource.

I hope this answers some of your questions. If there is something I didn't cover here, please don't hesitate to email me at jharrison@okcchamber.com. We are looking forward to seeing everyone at the second meeting in June!