Crisis: an unstable or crucial time or state of affairs whose outcome will make a decisive difference for better or worse (Webster's New Collegiate).

"Playing with the media is a game you can't afford to lose. At worst, your reputation's at stake. At best, you forfeit a chance to build important relationships which can benefit you, your firm, and your clients. Reporters may make the rules, but media training helps you learn to play the game to your advantage."

So says Kathy Kerchner, a former television reporter and now president of InterSpeak, LLC, a company which specializes in training people to be successful with the news media.

Reporters come to any interview with an agenda based on the editorial demands of their employer and their own desire for high-level visibility. The newsroom is a very competitive place and if an interview with you can help propel the story to the front page or the lead of the 6 o'clock news, it's difficult for most journalists to retain complete objectivity.

Media training teaches you to let your agenda direct an interview in a manner which still gives a reporter what he or she is looking for -- newsworthy information -- while reducing the chances of inaccurate facts and quotes being used. I say reducing -- eliminating isn't possible. "You can eliminate inaccurate quotes by not giving the interview," I've been told. Bull. Then the reporter just gets quotes from someone else, facts from less-accurate sources, and directly or indirectly implies that you're hiding something.

The media training process typically includes education on how to prepare for an interview, what the "rules of the game" are, how to make sure your key messages get across no matter what's being asked, and very specific, personalized instruction on how you can be a better interview subject. The latter is accomplished by videotaping, replaying and critiquing a series of mock interviews during the course of the training session -- and then giving you the tape to take home and study again. Many people who thought they were great interview subjects pre-training have been shocked at the initial results when viewed on tape -- but then pleased with the positive changes evinced as training points are integrated into subsequent interviews.

"My clients have been able to use media training not merely for dealing with the press, but also for communicating better when speaking to almost any audience, particularly when explaining a difficult situation," says Paul Roshka, founding partner of Roshka, Heyman, & DeWulf, a Phoenix firm specializing in securities litigation and business disputes.

A final note -- media training is hard work, usually requiring at least six hours of time during which you shouldn't be interrupted by phone or pager. And it's even harder work if a crisis is already breaking; as with other elements of crisis communications, preparation before the stuff hits the fan is less stressful. Smart companies run their top execs through media training at least once every couple of years, with specially focused "brush up" sessions concurrent with an actual, breaking crisis.

Bernstein Crisis Management LLC is a national consultancy providing 24/7 access to its president, Jonathan Bernstein, and a network of carefully screened, highly experienced crisis management experts who are on call nationwide. Bernstein Crisis Management engages in the full spectrum of crisis management services: crisis prevention, response, planning, training and simulations. www.bernsteincrisismanagement.com