Teaching Social Work Students to Use the News Media for Public Education Purposes

Social workers do not enjoy a positive public image. This makes it difficult for them to gain a sympathetic audience or necessary public support for essential programs and services. This paper describes an attempt to teach social work students to use the news media (radio, television, and local newspapers) to publicize social work activities and social service programs, and to educate the public about existing and needed services. The authors present information on the opportunities that exist in most localities for these public education activities and describe the results achieved in a two-year pilot effort.