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From: Leys Geddes
Date: 20 Oct 2008
Time: 05:26:03 -0500
Remote Name: 86.163.200.31
Thanks, Michael. I don't necessarily think we need to be dramatic about it, because that kind of behaviour can look artificial and thus exceptionally silly. But opportunities may come up from which we can profit because there is some really appropriate and newsworthy context. So I think we need to look out for examples of very good or very bad things which happen to PWS, which we can give to the media, who will reach that huge non-PWS audience for us. It's not easy, and I've only achieved a good level of publicity twice in three years: firstly, by complaining about the categorisation as 'Comedy' of some videos on YouTube which showed people struggling to speak; and, secondly, by fighting for the introduction of Early Intervention in England, because it is by far the most cost-effective way of reducing the prevalence of stuttering. The first story was featured in the Guardian, one of our most influnetial daily newspapers and, from there, it was picked up by the BBC and some 30 other news media in the UK and abroad. There were also interviews on the BBC Radio 4 PM programme and BBC Radio London. At the peak of the campaign, hits on the BSA website rose from around 1,500 a day to 3,700. A worldwide campaign against YouTube was then developed, featuring an online petition.