Media Policy

Details

Scope and purpose of this policy

This media policy provides a set of guidelines forall Sleep Health Foundation (SHF) members, staff, board directors and expert spokespersons to adhere to when interacting with the media.

This policy is also designed to ensure that any comments made to the media are consistent and in accordance with SHF principles.

  1. People speaking to the media on behalf of the SHF can only associate themselves with SHF if
    1. they are a current Board Director or
    2. they have been approached by the SHF’s Media Consultant or a SHF Director to speak on behalf of the SHF to a particular media outlet or
    3. their contact details have been included in a SHF media release (with their express consent). 
  2. Such people should take care that they only give their SHF affiliation to the interviewer and don’t include their place of work.  
  3. When doing media interviews NOT organised by the SHF, SHF members cannot use their SHF membership/affiliation in their title unless approved by a member of the SHF Executive Committee.
  4. The role of a SHF media spokesperson is to educate the public about sleep. People speaking to the media on behalf of the SHF should ensure that their comments relate to an up to date evidence base. The spokesperson is expected to acknowledge significant controversy and/or ambiguity where it exists.
  5. All comments should adhere to the highest standards of ethics and integrity and strictly avoid any comments that are sexist, racist, ageist or homophobic. Privacy laws must be adhered to, as must rules relating to comments on court-related cases. 
  6. SHF media spokespeople must ensure that they avoid endorsement of any specific commercial product(s) and avoid commenting in areas where commercial products are involved.
  7. SHF media spokespeople must avoid commenting to the media when they have a conflict of interest and must either notify the media consultant or a SHF Director so an alternate spokesperson can be organised.
  8. The SHF Executive committee may disallow any person, including a current Board Director, from associating themselves with the SHF in the media.

If anything in this policy is unclear, or you are unsure about how to apply the policy, please contact Liv Patterson at .