Media Training

Basic Workshop Info

The Speak Up! Media Training Intensive Workshop was developed for people with experience in the sex trades, LGBQ people, and trans and gender-non-conforming people who want to speak publicly – in mainstream and community produced media – about their experiences and offer their political perspective on issues that affect their communities. The workshop is designed to support each participant to speak up from their own perspective and on issues that matter to them. Our seminar teaches participants to create strategic responses to media and public events.

Participants learn to:

  • evaluate press requests
  • create talking points and stick to them
  • decide on the best message for the audience
  • hold journalists to ethical standards
  • produce media products like press releases and letters to the editor
  • evaluate the risks and rewards of being “out”
  • be confident in an interview even when it gets weird
  • and more.

When: May 17-19

This spring, the workshop will take place during the weekend of May 17-19. On Friday, May 17th we will host a dinner, social hour, and introductory discussion in Brooklyn. Then, we will spend all day on Saturday the 18th and Sunday the 19st in workshop sessions in Manhattan, from 9.30 am to 6 pm. There will be scheduled breaks during the workshop days, and we will provide breakfast (including tea and coffee), lunch, snacks, and beverages to all participants. Participants must commit to being present for the entire weekend.

Who Participates?

Some participants are writers who want to be able to market themselves and their work better while some work with nonprofit organizations and want to get more media attention for their work on sex workers’ rights. Some have had negative experiences with the media or don’t often have a place within the sex workers’ rights movement and want to be better prepared, so we’re firmly committed to diversity, both in terms of demographics and experiences.

The workshop is led by Audacia Ray, Founder and Director of the Red Umbrella Project, and co-facilitated by Francisco Ramirez.

Costs and Support

  • For New Yorkers and people who live in the tri-state area and may participate in New York based media in the future, the workshop is FREE. We are also able to provide MetroCards to those who need them, and can offer a stipend to cover childcare or other costs participants may have.

  • For people traveling to New York from other areas in the US and Canada, the workshop fee is $150. This fee covers the workshop sessions, printed materials, and the following meals: dinner Friday night, breakfast and lunch on Saturday and Sunday. We are unable to offer travel and childcare stipends to people traveling to the workshop from outside the tri-state area. However, we are able to match people with free, safe housing within New York City and there are a limited number of scholarships available for people who cannot afford the workshop fee.

Application

There are two ways to apply:

  • Submit the application using the online form
  • Download the Spring 2013 Media Training Application (56) as a PDF, print it, fill it out, and send it by email to workshops@redumbrellaproject.org on a rolling basis. If applying by mail, please send application to Red Umbrella Project 101 West 23rd Street #351, New York, NY 10011.

If you have questions about the workshop or the application process, please email workshops@redumbrellaproject.org.

We will notify applicants of their acceptance on a rolling basis.