Compose—in about 500 words—a Press Release for Facebook that informs the public (really, the journalists and editors of the public) of their newly established role in preventing illegal gun sales. Remember that you will embody a PR head at Facebook for this assignment, so think about newsworthiness: why would Facebook want the public to know? How could you get The New York Times interested enough to publish a news story on it?

Try your best to find some recent quotes by politicians on illegal gun sales or illegal gun violence—make it timely. Research what Facebook intended to do and what they actually did. Sell to your audience that Facebook’s change in policies had an impact. Your goal is to relay and improve Facebook’s reputation for public good.

Purpose:

To practice compiling source material and modifying that source material to suit the needs of an organization. To provide advocacy and announce news that benefits an institutional source. To incite enough interest for your company/event that a news organization would want to publish a story on it—to continue spreading the word and benefiting your status.