You landed a spot on a list, maybe on Best Lawyers, Super Lawyers, Lawdragon, Chambers, 40 Under 40, or any of the myriad directories and rankings now prevalent in the legal profession, and you worked hard to earn that coveted recognition.

A sound bite, the little kernel that actually gets aired or printed, is the most important point of a longer speech or an interview. It cuts through the cluttered or lengthy background and provides the audience in only a few sentences (in the print medium) or a few seconds (on TV) the most critical element of the message point you want to convey. But, sound bites do not provide context so they can be especially vulnerable to manipulation or interpretation by the reporter covering the story. Thus, the more substance and color you can pack into your sound bite, the less likely your message is to be misconstrued or misrepresented.

Like politicians who produce on-demand sound bites that are clear and to the point, you too can become adept at being “quotable.” But, it does take practice and too many lawyers are prone to just “winging” it. The ability to produce sound bites is not just for lawyer “media hounds,” it is a skill that should be prioritized by every criminal defense attorney who has to answer queries from reporters. Why? If you gain a reputation as a smart, articulate, valuable, and available news source, the press will come back to you time and again for your “expert” opinions and criminal defense legal acumen.

When speaking to the press, make no mistake, producers and editors want you to keep your answers tight and on point. If you don’t create your own sound bite, they will likely do it for you. Rambling on will only get your comments largely edited, and perhaps in a way that won’t be very pleasing to you. Producers booking TV appearances and print editors choosing sources know which criminal defense attorneys have the ability to say more and tell the story with fewer words. If you can structure your commentary so that you become known as a capable source, media outlets will want you back. That equals more exposure for your work, and the profitable result of getting you on the short list for more white-collar business will certainly follow. So think small, think sound bite.

Tom Stanton is an Account Supervisor in Jaffe’s public relations group and has handled White Collar PR related to numerous high profile investigations, indictments and trials. Tom also served four years as a spokesman for the Cook County (IL) State’s Attorney’s office in Chicago. He can be reached at stantont@jaffeassociates.com or www.jaffeassociates.com.