October 1999

Members Sought as Media Spokespeople

By Lillie Balinova

The NYSSCPA public relations department would like to hear from members throughout the state who are interested in responding to the media on tax, accounting, financial planning, and other business and personal finance issues.

The Society specifically wants individuals with expertise in local, state, and federal taxation, as well as people who can respond to relevant issues impacting the public and the profession in their area. Volunteers who would like to staff tax season telephone hotlines that the Society organizes with local media outlets also should contact the public relations department.

The NYSSCPA works with members in all chapters who help identify and respond to issues in the news. Answering press inquiries not only increases visibility for the profession and the Society but also benefits individual members through media exposure for themselves and their firms.

"Contact with the media gives you visibility and lends credibility to the profession, while highlighting the importance of being a Society member," said Alan David Kahn, NYSSCPA General Committee on Public Relations member and Estate Planning Committee chair. "I also have found it personally rewarding to be considered an expert among my peers. In addition, my media exposure has given my clients confidence in the financial planning services that my firm provides."