Ever wonder why school bus crashes, even minor ones, tend to receive wide, out-of-proportion coverage in the local news? And the regional and national news, as well, depending on the casualty count?
It's pretty simple, really. Stories about endangered children, especially if accompanied by photos or video footage, pique a community's interest. Local residents might have a friend or relative who attends the involved school. Plus, traffic accidents have high curiosity value, which may explain why so many motorists slow down when they see ambulances and fire trucks attending to a crash on the highway. For these reasons and others, many local newspaper and TV outlets live by the motto, "If it bleeds, it leads."
So, what's my point? We need to accept the fact that school bus transportation tends to generate negative coverage in the media. It's just how it is. News stories about bus crashes are inevitable, as are stories about bus drivers who were arrested for drunk driving or were caught selling drugs to their passengers. With the proliferation of video surveillance on school buses, you're also apt to see students fighting with each other, the driver or parents who board the bus illegally.
Which is why we should be pushing the positive news to the media at every opportunity. I've gotten story leads about bus drivers who've celebrated their 60th anniversary on the job, some without a single preventable accident! Or how about the school district that received a 100% pass rate on their latest state bus inspections? Or the addition of high-tech safety equipment, such as GPS units, in buses. These types of stories are worth their weight in gold in the local newspaper or on the local TV news. If you're not alerting the media to these events, you should be.
Countering the media's incessantly negative coverage of school transportation is essential because it impacts the industry's public image, which can make it harder to recruit bus drivers, obtain full funding for the program and win community support and appreciation.
It's tough enough to actually run a school bus operation. Having to run a public relations campaign on top of that is asking a lot. But, you know what, it's an important part of any successful program.
Let me know if you have other ideas on how to improve the industry's image.
