Dear PR colleagues,

RTÉ camera crews have had to adapt the way they work in order to comply with new HSE guidelines in relation to the Covid-19 crisis. If you are organising a press event please consider the following.

It is vital camera crews are given early access to venues. We now have additional protocols that need to be followed. We need to be in position at least half an hour before any press conference starts, it is not possible to make exceptions.

Please consider choosing a room that accommodates all media comfortably; the bigger the better. There must be a two metre gap between all seats in the room and also a two metre gap between those standing including guests, reporters, photographers and camera crews. The press centres in Government Buildings and the Department of Health are good examples of how a room could be laid out.

Please ensure there is a dedicated sound feed the media can plug into to avoid cross contamination of microphones.

Please ensure all roving microphones are cleaned each time they are passed to a contributor or consider a fixed microphone position for journalists to ask questions from.

Consider using an application so questions can be sent in by reporters who can’t make it in person but still want to participate. Fewer people in a room will make it easier for all to work safely.

It is not just important that social distancing is exercised on-camera but off-camera too. The days of the large media scrum are over for the foreseeable future. We would suggest organising the media breaking down into smaller groups. Photographers could take their pictures at the start and once they have finish they could leave the TV and radio reporters to conduct there interviews in smaller groups. This will ensure social distancing is observed at all times.

A two metre gap between the interviewee and reporter and a two metre gap between the reporter and cameraperson is now the benchmark we adhere to.

As you will appreciate if the Social Distancing guidelines aren’t adhered to we won’t be in a position to cover your press event.

Your assistance is appreciated in this matter.

Kind regards,

 

RTÉ Camera Crews