Media tactics in New Zealand's Crown Health Enterprises

New Zealand's public hospitals have been recently been converted into Crown Health Enterprises (commonly called CHEs) as part of broadly unpopular health reforms. The new Crown Health Enterprises, required to operate within commercial restraints, have been the target of widespread attack from politicians, medical organizations, community groups and the media. This article examines the press coverage of two Crown Health Enterprises similar in their size and provincial location over three months. The research shows that quantity and favorability of press coverage is related to the input the organizations had into each story. Newspaper stories are also analyzed in terms of how and where the organizations' views feature. The study showed that proactive media relations paid off, both in terms of positive press coverage and in ensuring the CHEs' views were represented even when the news was bad. Emphasis on professional management techniques in public relations has encouraged practitioners to sideline the technical task of media relations. The results of this study suggest this may be a mistake in publicly funded organizations which rightly come under close media scrutiny.