Media relations support for the Human Genome Meeting 2004

Brief
The annual Human Genome Meeting (HGM), organised by the Human Genome Organisation (HUGO), is a significant event on the scientific calendar. In April 2004, the meeting was held in Berlin, with the German Genome Organisation acting as local hosts. As we enter the post-genomic era, following the sequencing of the human genome, the theme chosen by HUGO for HGM2004 was “What’s next in genome research?”. College Hill Life Sciences was briefed to provide a comprehensive media relations function for HUGO in support of the conference, including promotion of the meeting to the media, dissemination of news emerging from the meeting, organising and hosting press briefings and managing the press room.

	To obtain maximum media exposure for the meeting, nationally and internationally
	To co-ordinate media registration for the meeting, manage the press room and provide support to journalists
	To relay information on the key scientific developments being reported at the meeting to the media and achieve coverage of these
	To provide a comprehensive coverage report after the event

	Using the theme of the meeting, Northbank began by issuing an announcement to the media, in the form of an email invitation, to alert a comprehensive network of relevant media contacts to the meeting and the availability of free registration of media representatives
	This was followed up with a further alert providing brief overviews of the key news-worthy stories expected to emerge from the meeting, as identified by Northbank from a review of the provisional programme and submitted abstracts and initial contact with participating scientists
	Media contacts were directed to register for the meeting through a web-based form created by Northbank and accessed via the HGM2004 website, from which registration details were validated and recorded
	All speakers at the plenary and symposium sessions were contacted in advance of the meeting to secure their support for the media relations activities
	A press release announcing the opening of the conference was distributed, under embargo, to all media contacts in advance to facilitate advanced preparation of news items, in particular for the local and host nation press
	Northbank managed the press room throughout the conference, with an adjoining meeting room used for briefings and interviews, providing facilities for internet access (including wireless), fax, telephone, ISDN and photocopying, and from which media registration was co-ordinated and media enquiries dealt with, including the co-ordinating of interviews with scientists attending the meeting
	A programme of twice daily press briefings was prepared consisting of a press briefing immediately following each morning plenary session involving all the plenary speakers and an afternoon press briefing involving a selection of key speakers from the day’s symposia; the speakers’ participation was secured and they were fully briefed in advance
	Information sheets were prepared for each press briefing summarising the presentations made at the conference by each speaker; speaker biographies for each press briefing were also provided
	On registration, media attending the conference were provided with a pack containing conference information and programme, press releases, media briefing information sheets, speaker biographies and a briefings timetable
	To ensure that all materials were also made available to media unable to attend the meeting itself, a virtual press room was developed by Northbank, accessed via the HGM website, to hold downloadable media information
	The press briefings were held in a relatively informal style, focussing on providing an opportunity for questions, with each speaker summarising the key points of their presentations before responding to questions
	Clippings and broadcast monitoring agencies locally and internationally were briefed to monitor for and obtain copies / summaries of coverage generated by the meeting
	Northbank compiled copies of the coverage obtained and summaries of broadcast items into a comprehensive report that was provided to the Human Genome Organisation and the German Genome Organisation

	53 journalists registered as media representatives from at least seven different countries at the conference and specific interviews were arranged with speakers for several attendees
	Additional enquiries were dealt with and interviews arranged for several publications unable to attend, including the Daily Mail newspaper, Berliner Morgenpost newspaper, Good Morning Scotland radio programme and Nature online
	The press briefings were well attended with 17 journalists at the opening press briefing and 11 at each briefing on the following two days;
	There were 186 visitor sessions registered on the virtual press room and each of the press releases and briefing documents were downloaded from the site between 39 and 79 times
	The conference was reported on and news disseminated by several news agencies, including the German press agency (dpa) and AFP
	News from the conference was reported extremely widely in the local German media, both print and broadcast, with 13 items in national newspapers, 43 items in local newspapers, 7 news items on 4 different television stations and 22 items on 8 different radio stations
	The meeting also achieved coverage outside of specialist media outlets internationally, with news items being published in national newspapers in the UK and Pakistan and widely covered on the BBC in the UK, including on television, BBC News 24 and BBC1 news and on radio, BBC Radio 4, BBC Radio 5, BBC Radio Scotland and BBC Radio Wales national news and 7 regional UK BBC radio stations
	Coverage on Italian radio of a new study into the genetics of health aging resulted in octogenarian twins volunteering to participate in the study
	News from the meeting was also reported on several significant online news sites, including BBC News Online (three items during the conference), Nature Online and the Scientist online, and in several specialist print publications, including Nature and BioForum
	In addition to covering the opening of the conference itself, many of the developments in genomics research announced at the conference were reported widely as science news, with stories covered ranging from an investigation of the kangaroo genome to developments in computer modelling to profiles of the scientists themselves
	Within the coverage, the Human Genome Meeting itself received a significant amount of exposure, with 87% of the news items, both print and broadcast, known to have included a mention of the meeting, thereby achieving a key media relations objective

April 2004

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