**This is an in-person event at RCLS**

How do we handle calls from reporters, write-ups in newspapers, and information plastered on social media? Should we engage in conversation, make statements, or keep everything "off the record"? Join Mark Westin as he provides answers to these inquiries as well as general 101 training in how to handle the media. With the proper training, the media is nothing to fear and can be leveraged as a tool to support your library. 

This session is open to RCLS member libraries only and is recommended for library staff, administration, and trustees. This session will result in 2 credits for trustee education as well as continuing education for library staff. 

Mark Westin’s experience spans multiple genres, from network television to documentary film to live event production and music. His credits include documentaries, magazine shows and thousands of hours of news, entertainment and multimedia programming. Mark steered the launch of American Desi, the first English-language television channel for the South Asian community in the United States, and created programming that earned multiple Emmy Awards for Cablevision’s Metro TV, the pioneering New York lifestyle channel. He also served as VP of Production for Linda Ellerbee's award-winning Lucky Duck Productions. Mark was the Los Angeles senior producer for Court TV’s coverage of the O.J. Simpson trial, responsible for all daily operations and primetime editorial content of one of the most-watched global news events in history. At MSNBC, Mark was EP of the Abrams Report with Dan Abrams and Saturday Final with Lawrence O’Donnell, and senior producer of Headliners & Legends, America's Voices and Jesse Ventura's America. As Senior VP of Development at MediaGroup Films, Mark brought an established theatrical film company into the age of streaming video. MediaGroup’s Fast Lane Summer won Best Documentary at the New York Independent Film Festival and the Platinum Aurora Award as Best Sports Film. Mark also field produced MediaGroup’s documentary The Search for Sodom and Gomorrah in Jordan and Israel. Other credits include Access Hollywood, Day & Date, and CBS News Eye on America segments. His documentary Grassroots Rock was an official selection at the inaugural Beacon Independent Film Festival, and he received the National Newspaper Award for Video Journalism. Mark is an Emmy-nominated musician and composer of two film scores and three albums of original music. He is also an FAA-certified drone pilot, a member of Mensa and a motorcyclist.