Countless media encounters have schooled First Lady Melania Trump on the value of staying on message. It’s difficult in an intense media environment, but she’s learning to play the game.
Photo of Melania Trump and a baby/Courtesy of AOL.com
According to the New York Times, her tightly controlled “Be Best” tour through three states showed that Mrs. Trump has developed a more nuanced understanding of public image.
The tour addressed issues of social media, well-being, and the opioid crisis. It also emphasized motherhood—perhaps the only part of her private life that Mrs. Trump has publicly embraced. In a touchingly personal story, she recalled warning her 12-year-old son, Barron, about the dangers of drug abuse.
Another focus of the “Be Best” tour was to bring more awareness to the issue of neonatal abstinence syndrome. Babies born with this condition – one every 15 minutes – suffer from opioid withdrawal.
Now more relaxed in front of the media, Mrs. Trump even chastised the press for focusing on the wrong things.
“I challenge the press to devote as much time to the lives lost and the potential lives that could be saved, by dedicating the same amount of coverage that you do to idle gossip or trivial stories,” Mrs. Trump said.
No one is sure which coverage she, an avid media watcher, considers trivial. But professional media coaches are never without opinions either.
“In comparison to Michelle Obama’s catchy tag, ‘Let’s Move,’ one noted, “Be Your Best” would have been a more powerful, call-to-action phrase. Learning how to create a message and knowing how to win at the game is what media coaching is all about.
But even the most disciplined presenters occasionally answer an off-the-wall, off-the-subject question. The Trump family’s favorite dish at dinnertime? Spaghetti.