Department of Labor and Employment

Labor Communications Office

Manual on the Preparation of A News Release
Introduction
This is a Manual on the Preparation of A News Release, a step-by-step process on
how a DOLE news release, or DOLE news story, is conceived, researched, drafted,
edited, finalized, and approved before its dissemination to the news media.
This Manual on the Preparation of A News Release is issued by the Labor
Communications Office with one primary purpose: to guide LCO writers and writers
of the DOLE attached agencies, bureaus, regional offices, and services along the
uneven pathways where a DOLE news story begins its tentative steps to tiptoe,
sometimes reel, stand-up awkwardly, traipse, sometimes spin and backtrack, to
become a clean copy of a story moving forward and straight to its final destination-the pages of a newspaper.
Borne out by the experience of repetition that has become a habit, the process of
writing a DOLE news is tedious--notice the rhyme?--so much so that many DOLE
officials and employees express avid wonder how LCO news writers keep their
sanity--and sustain their sense of duty, everyday, by writing the news.
Now it can be told: writing the DOLE news story is fun, not sorrowful.
This realization sets in the moment the newspapers carry the DOLE news story,
which means the story is worth telling. The fun turns to immense joy when radio and
television--which in our country saturate their airwaves with news mostly copied from
the newspapers--air the DOLE news release. 'Never mind the writer, just air the
DOLE news', is an unspoken plead of a DOLE news writer.
In this Manual on the Preparation of A News Release, the LCO, for the first time, set
on paper that process of having fun--of writing the DOLE news story that Filipinos
would love to read, watch, and listen to.
This manual is for you--the DOLE news writer.
Basis of DOLE News Releases
It is the Secretary of Labor and Employment who principally directs the LCO, through
the Director, to write a news release on a particular topic. The instruction may be
verbal, or may come in the form of a marginal note on an official document.
On its own, the LCO drafts news stories based on the following:
(1) Inter-DOLE documents, such as:
(a) Administrative Orders

(b) Department Orders

(c) Implementing Rules and Regulations
(d) Wage Orders
(e) Decisions
(f) Advisories
(g) Memoranda from the Secretary and other Senior Officials to Attached
Agencies, Bureaus, Regional Offices, Services
(h) Memoranda and Reports, including Annual Reports, from Attached Agencies,
Bureaus, Regional Offices, and Services
(i) Resolutions of Governing Boards
(j) Survey, researches, fact and info sheets, Q&A, briefers, and studies from
Attached Agencies, Bureaus, Regional Offices, and Services
(k) Speeches, messages, and statements of the Secretary and other Senior
Officials
(l) Publications from Attached Agencies, Bureaus, Regional Offices, and
Services
(2) External documents
(a) Speeches, messages, and statements of the President and other top
government officials on themes/topics related to the DOLE
(b) Labor and employment-related bills and resolutions enacted into law and
corresponding implementing rules and regulations
(c) Labor and employment-related Conventions and Treaties
(d) Labor and employment-related manifestos and declarations
(e) Presidential issuances on and directives to the DOLE
(f) Memoranda of Agreements between the DOLE and other government and
private agencies
(g) Reports, researches, surveys, studies, fact sheets, info sheets, Q&A, briefers,
and updates on DOLE-related matters
(h) Collective Bargaining Agreements and Dispute Settlement Agreements
(3) Result of LCO coverage, based on official invitations or on LCO's initiative, of:
(a) Press conferences, media briefings, and media interviews of the Secretary
and of Attached Agencies, Bureaus, Regional Offices, and Services
(b) Events and activities of the DOLE and of Attached Agencies, Bureaus,
Regional Offices, and Services, such as:
b.1. Meetings, seminars, briefings, conferences, caravans, public hearings,
dialogues, lectures, consultations, training, workshops, symposia,
congresses, summits, roundtable discussions, field or plant visits
b.2. Job Fairs, holiday commemoration, anniversaries, product or service
launchings, inaugurations, contests and searches, awarding ceremonies,
signing of memorandums of agreements, turnover and handover of
documents, projects, technical and financial assistance, etc.
(c) Events where DOLE is invited, a participant, or co-host, or co-organizer

Steps in Writing the DOLE News Story

Step 1
A. If a news or feature story is to be based on inter-DOLE or external document,
Director selects and identifies the document for write up; discusses the same with
concerned Division Chief; and instructs Division Chief to draft a news or feature
story.
Process Cycle Time: Five (5) minutes
B. If a news or feature story is to be based on the result of coverage, Director
instructs Division Chief to assign a writer and photographer to cover. Most often,
this instruction is based on a document received by the LCO. The output of a
coverage is one or two media releases and a photo release with complete
caption.
Process Cycle Time: Five (5) minutes
Step 2
A. (1) If media release is to be based on inter-DOLE or external document, Division
Chief assigns the material to a writer in the division to draft the news or feature
story; discusses with the writer if further research is needed; indicates writers
name on the document and the date of the assignment.
Process Cycle Time: Five (5) minutes
B. (1) If a news or feature story is to be based on the result of coverage, Division
Chief assigns a writer and photographer in the division to cover; signs Official
Business slips of writer and photographer if coverage is within the National
Capital Region.
Process Cycle Time: Five (5) minutes
(2) If coverage is outside the NCR, Division Chief recommends to Director the
issuance of an authority to travel for writer and photographer assigned.
Process Cycle Time: Five (5) minutes
(3) Writer and photographer coordinates with the Office of destination and
prepares the following travel requirements:
a. Authority to travel
b. Voucher/obligation request
c. Itinerary of travel
d. Request/conformation of plane tickets, if travel is by plane
Process Cycle Time: One (1) hour

In both instances, "A" and "B" instances, Division Chief maintains a logbook
where assignments shall be recorded.
Step 3
A. If media release is to be based on inter-DOLE or external document, writer
studies material and writes the news or feature story if he/she determines no
further research is necessary.
Process cycle time: Two (2) hours
B. If media release is to be based on inter-DOLE or external document, and writer,
after studying material, determines research is needed, writer conducts research
and thereafter writes the news or feature story.
(1) If research involves point person interview, writer arranges schedule for
interview; prepares Official Business slip and requests for Division Chief
signature on it before proceeding to the interview. Writes news or feature story
after return to office.
Process cycle time: Four (4) hours after return to office
(2) If research involves an interview through phone, writer conducts interview and
writes the news or feature story after the phone interview.
Process cycle time: Three (3) hours after phone interview
(3) If research involves an interview through e-mail, writer e-mails the questions
and wait for response; writes story after response is received.
Process cycle time: Four (4) hours after response to e-mail is received
(4) If research involves archival research or library research and the archive or
library is outside the DOLE but within the National Capital Region, writer prepares
Official Business slip and requests Division Chief signature on it before
conducting the research. Writes the news or feature story after return to the
office. If return to the office is at the close of office hours, writer writes the story
the following day.
Process cycle time: Four (4) hours after return to office
C. If a news or feature story is to be based on the result of coverage, and the
coverage is within Metro Manila, writer and photographer proceeds to the
coverage. Writer writes the news or feature story after his/her return to the office.
Photographer develops and captions the photo/s after his/her return to the office.
If return to the office is at the close of office hours, writer writes the story and
photographer develops and captions the photo/s the following day.
Process Cycle Time: Two (3) hours after return to office

D. If coverage is outside Metro Manila, writer writes the news or feature story at
destination and sends it through e-mail to Division Chief for editing; photographer
develops and captions photo/s and sends it through e-mail to Division Chief for
editing.
Process Cycle Time: Four (4) hours after coverage
Step 4
Writer submits draft news or feature story to Division Chief for proofreading and
editing, in hard and soft copies, with background materials, notes, transcripts
attached. The draft should conform to the following specifications:
(a) Printed on an A4 size paper
(b) Font or typeface, Arial; size 12
(c) Margin, normal; double-spaced
The heading of the news or feature story should be as follows:
News Release, or
DOLE Features (As the case may be)
Department of Labor and Employment
(Name of Attached Agency, Bureau, Regional Office, Service, as the case may
be)
(Date)
The initials of the author/s should be written at the end of the draft news or feature
story. A story submitted by the Labor Communications Officer of an Attached Agency,
Bureau, Regional Office, or Service must be attributed to the Labor Communications
Officer even if the story undergoes editing by the Labor Communications Office.
Process Cycle Time: 10 minutes
Step 5
A. Division Chief edits the draft news or feature story. If the news or feature story
has no editing or correction, Division Chief submits the same to the Director for
approval, in soft copy, and in hard copy with the attachments.
Process Cycle Time: One (1) hour upon receipt
B. If the news or feature story needs further revision or correction, Division Chief
returns the story to the writer.
Process Cycle Time: Five (5) minutes
Step 6
Writer corrects or revises news or feature story according to instruction; re-submits
the same to Division Chief.

Process cycle time: Thirty (30) minutes

Step 7
Division Chief examines the revised or corrected draft news or feature story. If the
corrections and revisions have been effected as instructed, Division Chief submits
the same to the Director for approval, in soft copy, and in hard copy with all the
attachments, including the copy with proofreaders' marks.
Step 8
A. Director reviews draft news or feature story. If draft news or feature story is in
order, notes the same with "OK. For approval of the Secretary."; initials it and
sends the draft story to the Office of the Secretary for approval.
Process cycle time: Five (5) minutes
B. Director reviews draft news or feature story and edits it.
(1) If the editing is minor, Director returns the draft news or feature story to the
Division Chief, who causes to effect the editing. Division Chief prints a clean copy
and returns the same to the Director for final pass.
Process cycle time: Fifteen (15) minutes
(2) If the draft news or feature story needs major revision or correction, Director
returns the story to the Division Chief, who causes it to be revised or corrected,
after which he returns it to the Director for final pass. If the same is in order,
Director notes the same with "OK. For approval of the Secretary."; initials it, and
causes the same to be recorded in a log book before sending it to the Office of
the Secretary for approval.
Process Cycle Time: One (1) hour for revision or correction
Note: If the draft news or feature story does not involve policy, but just a
report of, say, a training, the Director may approve the same for release to the
media. However, a copy of the story should be furnished the Secretary of
Labor and Employment, for information.
Step 9
A. If a draft news or feature story is returned by the Secretary of Labor and
Employment with approval for release, the Director sends the story to the Division
Chief of the Media and External Relations Division for release and uploading to
the website. A copy of the story and the attachments are filed at the Office of the
Director.
Process Cycle Time: Thirty (30) minutes after receipt of approved draft

A. If a draft news or feature story is returned by the Secretary of Labor and

Employment with revision or correction, the Director sends the story to the
concerned Division Chief for the story to be revised or corrected.
Process Cycle Time: Ten (10) minutes after receipt of draft for revision or correction
C. The Division Chief revises or corrects the draft; submits the revised or corrected
draft to the Director who reviews the same for a final pass before he sends it to
the Secretary for approval.
Process Cycle Time: Thirty (30) minutes after receipt of draft for revision or
correction
D. If a draft news or feature story is returned by the Secretary of Labor and
Employment with further instruction, or notation such as, "Hold", or
"Disapproved", the Office of the Director files the story for reference purposes.
Process Cycle Time: Ten (10) minutes after receipt
Step 10
The Director directs the OD staff to release to the media an approved news
release. Following approval, the following steps are taken:
(1) OD staff formats the news release, assigns a control number, and logs it.
Process cycle time: Five minutes after approval
(2) OD staff releases the news release through e-mail and/or fax in the order of
preference as follows:
2.1. DOLE Press Office
2.2. Presidential Communications Operations Office
2.3. Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning
Office at Fax No.: +632 735 6167; and the emails of the Presidential
Spokesperson, Secretary Ramon A. Carandang, Undersecretary Manuel L.
Quezon III, and Undersecretary Abigail Valte
2.4. Print Media
2.5. Radio
2.6. TV
2.7. Online media

2.8. Other DOLE officials concerned

Process Cycle Time: Two hours. Release should be finished before 3:00 P.M.

(3) OD staff uploads the news release in the DOLE website, www.dole.gov.ph
Process Cycle Time: Ten minutes
(4) OD staff files copy of news release with all the sources, background materials,
notes, transcript of interviews, and proofread/edited copies attached. A control log
book is maintained by the OD for borrowers of the news release and attached
files.
Process Cycle Time: Ten minutes
END