Are you being authentic — or just playing the part? This week on the CAPIO Chirp, we dive deep into what it really means to be authentic as a public information officer.
Join us as we chat with Dr. Chris Hopwood, personality psychology expert from the University of Zurich, to explore:
✅ What authenticity actually is (and isn’t)
✅ How it shows up — and why it matters — in public communication
✅ When “being real” helps… and when it might hurt
✅ Comedy, irony, and sharks in rivers (yes, really)
✅ How to stay true to yourself while still doing your job
Whether you're managing public messaging, facing online trolls, or navigating policies you don't agree with — this episode is for you.
🎧 Listen now and discover how to lead with honesty, empathy, and resilience.
As government communicators, we spend a lot of our time making sure residents in our cities, counties, and districts are informed about important information, especially in times of emergency. This public messaging is key, and we’re often the first ones to know and are responsible for getting word out the right way. But what do you do when it happens to you? In this episode, Chino Hills Community Relations Manager Valarie McClung and Public Information Officer Nicole Freeman discuss how they responded to a fire at their City Hall and continued to provide services to their community.
Holding a meeting is more than logistics, it's about how you prepare. There is much to consider, whether you are having a town hall to discuss a significant capital project or a planning session with a half-dozen stakeholders. How have you prepared yourself and your team mentally and emotionally? What are your goals? What are the needs and goals of your community? On this episode of The Chirp, we speak with Davenport Institute Executive Director Maureen Tobin about how to prepare yourself and your team, set clear agendas with defined goals, and encourage participation.
AI is here to stay. How can government communicators optimize the use of this new tool in their toolbelt? Listen in on this conversation between AI expert Josh Hirsch, CAPIO 2025 Conference Keynote speaker and CAPIO podcast hosts Paul Hosley and Lael Wageneck, APR about how AI can be used in the government comms sector. How can you maximize your use of this tool for sentiment analysis or as a baseline for your strategic communications plan? How do you communicate with AI to get the results you want? This fun and insightful podcast will remove some of the mystery about using AI in a tangible way to support your community.
Enjoy learning more about three women’s professional journeys from PIO to entrepreneur during this CAPIO Chirp. CAPIO's podcast hosts interview Rachel Dickman, MBA, APR, CEO and Founder of RMG Communications; Jenny Windle, President and Founder of JPW Communications; and Sheri Benninghoven, APR, Principal, SAE Communications. Hear about their adventures and tips for success in business from these three Paul B. Clark recipients and longtime CAPIO members.
Join us to hear incoming CAPIO president, Brie Anne Coleman, APR, talk about how to make the most of your time at the CAPIO Conference being held April 1-4 in Napa, California.
In this special edition of the CAPIO Chirp podcast, Chloe Castillo, a Deputy Public Information Officer for CalFire, takes us behind the scenes of the Joint Information Center (JIC) during the Palisades Fire. From managing international media attention to balancing the multilingual and localized communication needs of the community, Chloe shares invaluable insights for communicators tackling the complexities of crisis communications on the front lines and advice for communicators looking to assist.
During this episode our podcast hosts interview CAPIO's 2024 Special Award Winners. Each year CAPIO honors several individuals with distinctions including our Communicator of the Year, Rising Star, Crisis Communications Leader and Paul B. Clark awards. These awards recognize individuals who have had a distinctive impact at their agency or in government communications state-wide. We begin this interview with our 2024 Paul B. Clark recipient, Maurice Chaney, PIO for City of Roseville’s Environmental Utilities. Next, we hear from the County of Fresno’s communications team Sonja Dosti, APR, Joshua Dean and Michelle Avalos who were honored with our 2024 Crisis Communications Leader of the Year. Joshua Dean was also recognized as our 2024 Rising Star. Finally, we interviewed our 2024 Communicator of the Year, Kevin Strauss, Communications Manager for the Santa Clarita Valley Water Agency.
In this episode, we find out what it’s like to work for the government...the BIG government. Chris Meagher, Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs, U.S. Department of Defense, discusses how he went from writing about sports to a position on the big stage working for the Pentagon and the White House.
In this episode of the CAPIO Chirp, we explore the growing trend of First Amendment audits and their impact on local government agencies. Ashley Metzger (1:35), consultant with Regional Government Services, shares her personal insight of audits and offers practical tips on preparation as a former water agency communicator. Next up attorney Deborah Fox (19:40), one of California’s foremost experts on First Amendment issues, provides legal insight, discussing the history and legal framework of these audits. Whether you work for a city, county, or special district, this episode equips you with the basics of how to handle First Amendment audits with confidence and the knowledge of where to look for additional training resources.
For this CAPIO Chirp, we are excited to interview Thomas Christensen, CAPIO's incoming president, about all things conference! Enjoy a sneak preview of what is in store for attendees at our May 13 - 16, 2024 event being held in Indian Wells – it's where the desert landscape becomes the backdrop for your professional recharge.
In this episode, Scotty and Paul talk with two outstanding communicators, DeDe Cordell, Communications Manager for Yuba Water Agency, and Dan Fenstermaker, Media Services Specialist at the City of Brea. They share some awesome ways to give love and show support to their staff and creatively highlight the dedicated people and roles of their government agencies.
00:00 – 00:50 Intro, featuring a message from sponsor Tripepi Smith
00:50 – 15:55 DeDe Cordell reveals how her communications team helps to humanize their government agency by pulling back the curtain and shining a spotlight on their employees. She shares how highlighting the personal side of people connects with internal and external audiences. By hitting the streets to showcase their staff and using high-quality photos and videos, they are able to strategically gain the attention of their audiences while making their employees feel valued. Yuba Water Instagram
15:55 – 37:00 Dan Fenstermaker shares how the City of Brea’s comms team developed a podcast to recognize staff’s contributions to their organization and the community. They even created a radio station to inspire unity and good vibes within their teams. This Friday station developed through Microsoft Teams has become a big morale booster for staff. City of Brea Podcast
37:00 – 37:23 Closing Remarks
So what does it take to become Communicator of the Year? We find out from Wendy Aguilar with the Sacramento Fire Department, who received one of CAPIO’s highest honors at the recent conference in Monterey.
Hint: be open to crazy ideas
Link: Sacramento Fire Department TikTok
In this episode, you’ll hear:
A snippet of Wendy’s acceptance speech (1:14)
Who is Wendy Aguilar? (2:27)
Where did she put her award? (3:40)
What is Wendy passionate about? (4:24)
How did she come up with the idea for her award-winning video series? (5:04)
Why, as storytellers, we should “go for it” (7:20)
How to get people to resonate with your story (8:42)
How to make your stories connect with your community (11:15)
What does Wendy’s job entail? (14:38)
What is it like to work for a fire department? (15:50)
What’s the difference between a fire engine and a fire truck? Learning new lingo (18:50)
Why did she choose a career as a PIO? (19:50)
How does she balance “putting out fires” vs. planning communications? (22:00)
Lessons Wendy has learned at Sac Fire (23:00)
How has CAPIO benefited Wendy’s career? (24:18)
In this episode we delve into the fascinating intersection of artificial intelligence and public information: is AI a friend or is it a foe? This episode features three interviews with experts in the field who will share their insights on various aspects of this topic. Host Paul is joined by guest co-host Ericka Diaz, Media Analyst for the City of Agoura Hills, for this fascinating discussion on all things AI.
You’ll hear from CNET technology expert Brian Cooley for an explanation about AI. Then communications expert Tim O’Brien with O’Brien Communications will discuss the ethical concerns surrounding AI. And lastly, we’ll hear how the City of Santa Clarita’s public information office is putting AI into use, with Carrie Lujan, Communications Manager for the city.
Get ready for a fascinating and robust discussion on AI.
Show Notes
0:00 – Introduction, written and voiced by AI.
1:50 –Brian Cooley provides an overview of generative artificial intelligence and its implications for professional communicators. He discusses examples of how it’s being applied, how it can be used to amplify messaging and incorporated into routine practices, and some potential advantages, limitations, and side-effects to consider when generating and using AI content in daily practice. He also touches on how to incorporate AI to take out the grunt work of some tasks and the future of AI.
17:02 –Tim O’Brien explores the ethical considerations surrounding AI and how it’s being used in government public relations. With AI becoming increasingly prevalent in our daily lives, it’s crucial that we have discussions about how it should be regulated and utilized in a responsible manner.
He addresses questions such as who’s accountable for AI-generated content when something goes wrong? What impacts could AI have on existing jobs and entry-level positions? Is AI bias? How should communicators approach AI/ChatGPT?
32:32 – Carrie Lujan discusses how their public information office is using AI in their operations and the benefits it’s bringing to their work. She talks about how they got their leadership team on-board with using AI as a tool for creating content. She also impresses the importance of fact-checking, quality control, and branding standards before putting AI-generated content out to the public. They go into the good and evil uses of AI on photos and videos and what to be aware of.
Did you know that podcast listening has grown by almost 30 percent in the past three years?
And with that growth comes an opportunity for public agencies to better engage with their communities.
But what does it take to develop a government podcast and how do you attract listeners?
In this episode of CAPIO Chirp, we talk with the City of Agoura Hills and the Cucamonga Valley Water District about what it takes to launch a successful podcast.
It’s a podcast about podcasting!
Learn the newest tips on how best to use Facebook, Instagram and WhatsAp in emergencies and the next election.
April is APR Month. It’s a time to learn about how becoming Accredited in Public Relations can help advance your career. CAPIO members Connie Cochran, APR and Laurie Huelga, APR and provide some valuable first-hand advice and information about why the APR is a game-changer. Discover more about earning your APR by visiting www.capio.org/APR.
Tia Graham, Inspirationist and Founder of Arrive at Happy, joins CAPIO Chirp co-hosts to share her knowledge as a master motivator, executor, communicator, and business development professional. She also discusses her book "Be a Happy Leader," sharing with listeners how to stop the overwhelm, thrive personally, and achieve killer business results. Learn more about Tia at www.arriveathappy.com.
During the final episode in our three-part mini-series, Burning Communications, CAPIO Chirp co-hosts Scotty and Paul connect with the City of Santa Rosa's communications officer to examine the communications during and after The Tubbs Fire. The Tubbs Fire was a wildfire in Northern California during October 2017. At the time, the Tubbs Fire was the most destructive wildfire in California history, burning parts of Napa, Sonoma, and Lake counties, inflicting its greatest losses in the city of Santa Rosa.
First comes drought, then comes fire, and now the rain. It's Flood Preparedness Week, and CAPIO is sharing how public information officers and crisis communicators can prepare the public for heavy debris flows in burn areas. Four years ago, Santa Barbara County experienced deadly debris flows. Now, with another large fire ravaging the area, what's next? Tune in to hear from Lael Wageneck, APR, and Public Information Officer for Santa Barbara County Public Works Department.
