Media and Communications
In 2003 Media and Communications for the Sikh Coalition focused on promoting the individual projects of the program areas. Without the extensive budget necessary to proactively protect the Sikh identity, Media and Communications opportunistically used the tremendous projects undertaken by the Coalition to generate news and interest amongst the media. In addition, it helped focus messaging and polish materials supporting Coalition projects. Included in this report is a partial list of the television and print coverage of the work of the Sikh Coalition in 2003 (p. 15). In addition to this list, Media and Communications generated dozens of additional sets of coverage in the print and radio media about Sikhs related to Coalition projects.

For the Amric Singh case, Media and Communications helped arrange for police officers from London and Canada and various religious leaders from different faiths to speak at the press conference to support Amric’s case. In addition, its volunteers contacted all major news outlets in the New York area. As a result, over ten broadcast reporters and dozens of print media picked up the story of his battle versus the New York Police Department’s ban on turbans – making it the most covered Sikh story in the region for 2003.

Similarly, the New Jersey Sikh Civil Rights Agenda (p. 5), benefited from the Coalition’s Media team coordination. A set of volunteers contacted various press agencies and local papers to help build momentum around the signing of the agenda. As a result over a dozen news and television reporters covered the event, despite the fact that the signing had already received coverage.

Looking Ahead to 2004-2005
In 2004 Media and Communications will continue with a similar role, supporting projects of other Coalition program areas. As the Coalition resources expand, we will begin to take a more proactive role in pushing forward positive Sikh images to the media. In the future, we will look to package many of the stories of Sikhs into case studies, similar to those included in this report, but tailored to the news media.