Media Relations Specialist III

L.A. Care Health Plan•Los Angeles, CA

23h•$88,854 - $142,166

About The Position

The Media Relations Specialist III strategizes, leads, develops, and implements public relations activities in support of L.A. Care Health Plan’s mission, vision, values, and priorities. The role manages the work of the contracted Public Relations agency and leads its account representative on projects, programs, and initiatives seeking media attention. The Specialist manages communications between L.A. Care and media outlets, serves as the main media contact, and ensures media relations initiatives align with organizational objectives. The Specialist collaborates with the social media team by providing content and campaign input, develops messaging, and executes media campaigns that position L.A. Care as an innovative healthcare leader. The role manages multiple writing assignments and deliverables, acts as a subject matter expert, and mentors other staff. The position also supports issues management, crisis communications, media events, executive media opportunities, and media training.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Communications or Journalism; equivalent education and/or experience may be considered in lieu of a degree.
At least 5 years of relevant experience with increasing responsibility in the stated knowledge and skills.
Existing relationships with regional, community, ethnic, and health industry journalists.
Superior writing, editing, interpersonal, research, and information-gathering skills.
Ability to quickly and concisely draft a wide range of high-quality materials.
Ability to manage public relations vendors.
Ability to interview internal and external subjects, including C-level executives.
Deep understanding of current events and ability to determine their relevance to L.A. Care.
Demonstrated ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously and meet deadlines.
Proficiency with Microsoft Office, including Word, Excel, Access, and PowerPoint.
Persuasion skills, including persuading media to cover positive L.A. Care stories, counter negative stories, and consider L.A. Care executives as thought leaders and expert sources on healthcare topics.
Deep understanding of current social media trends and opportunities.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree in Communications or Journalism.
Experience within a healthcare organization, nonprofit, or public agency.
Understanding of Medi-Cal, Medicare, related public health programs, and the diverse community L.A. Care serves.
Bilingual ability in one of L.A. Care Health Plan’s threshold languages: English, Spanish, Chinese, Armenian, Arabic, Farsi, Khmer, Korean, Russian, Tagalog, or Vietnamese.
Accreditation in Public Relations (APR).

Responsibilities

Establish and cultivate relationships with reporters, editors, podcasters, bloggers, and other media to increase L.A. Care’s positive profile.
Respond to media inquiries by evaluating requests, identifying appropriate subject matter experts, and coordinating interviews.
Proactively pitch positive stories about L.A. Care, its programs, projects, initiatives, and product lines.
Seek out story ideas across L.A. Care departments and collaborate with internal and external stakeholders to identify stories.
Hold at least weekly meetings with the contracted Public Relations agency.
Maintain and update internal media lists and manage contracts with the Public Relations agency and other media vendors.
Develop and edit external communications materials, including press releases, media statements, key messages, and talking points, and manage schedules to meet media-sensitive deadlines.
Write executive bylined articles, op-eds, blogs, and similar content.
Develop holding statements and talking points for crisis management situations.
Support the Director on issues management and represent the Director or L.A. Care in external communications meetings or coalitions as needed.
Record video at L.A. Care-hosted events using a phone or other available equipment and provide clips and relevant information to news outlets that could not attend.
Order broadcast clips from clipping services and share them with appropriate stakeholders.
Purchase, gather, and upload broadcast, print, and online news placements to the website newsroom.
Develop interview questions for the internal video production team and conduct interviews when needed.
Coordinate and execute media events and manage media at L.A. Care events to support positive attendance and coverage.
Coordinate media opportunities with senior health plan leaders and provide talking points as needed.
Provide media training and public-speaking preparation for the CEO, leadership team members, and other staff.
Evaluate business operations and processes, identify where technical solutions could improve performance, and provide consultation and specialized knowledge across business operations.
Ensure project and program deliverables are factually accurate and meet departmental and organizational needs as well as applicable legislative policies, standards, and best practices.
Provide training, recommend process improvements, and mentor junior staff and department interns as needed.
Mentor Communications Department members on media and public relations issues and protocols.
Perform other duties as assigned.