Media Training: Comms skill or leadership skill?

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Why media training is more than just a comms skill for your team – it’s a leadership skill

If you lead people, you’re already a “media figure” – whether you like it or not. Internal communications, huddles, town halls, and professional social media content all tie back to the foundations of media training.


Knowing your key message, ensuring it gets heard, and leading the conversation rather than waiting for certain questions to be asked are transferrable to any communications opportunity.


Media training is often treated as a niche capability – something you give to key leaders & spokespeople. That thinking is outdated.


In 2026, every leader is a public communicator – whether they’re doing a media interview, a client meeting, an investor call, a team meeting, or internal town hall. These communication opportunities don’t just test messaging, they test judgment, clarity, and leadership under pressure.


The best leaders aren’t better because they sound polished, they’re better because:



  • They think clearly while being challenged
  • They make decisions in public without over-explaining
  • They hold a line without becoming defensive
  • They stay human while protecting trust and reputation


When leaders struggle to communicate, it’s rarely because they don’t know the facts. It’s because pressure can compromise thinking – and untrained leaders default to rambling, rigidity, or retreat.


Good media & communications training doesn’t teach leaders what to say. It teaches them how to think when it matters most. That’s why organisations doing this well don’t reserve this training for crisis moments or senior spokespeople, they build it into leadership development.


Because the way leaders communicate under scrutiny tells people everything about how they lead – especially when things get hard.

 

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