For reporters and those working with the media

Campus news and events

If you’re a member of the Williams community seeking publicity for your news or an event, please see our publicity information and guidelines. We maintain an archive of news releases and news stories about Williams. For assistance with any media request or interview, contact the Office of Communications at 413-597-2025.

Faculty and staff experts

Williams welcomes media interest in the college, our educational mission, and our people. We’re happy to connect you with numerous faculty experts who can offer comment on a wide range of topics. We also publish a list of fast facts about Williams that you may find helpful.

Please email Chief Communications Officer Jim Reische for assistance, or call him at 413-597-3401. Our office is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. EST. The college switchboard (413-597-3131) and Campus Safety and Security (413-597-4444) are available 24 hours a day.

For a complete listing of college departments, offices, programs, committees, and services, see Williams’ A-Z Index.

Policies for media on campus

Our goal is to welcome members of the media to campus as long as this can be done without disrupting or hindering learning and campus activities. If you’d like to conduct interviews or do photo or video work on campus, please submit a request to the Office of Communications in advance, including a brief description of your project, proposed arrival and departure dates and times, and names of all those who’d be visiting.

If the plan is compatible with our rules, we’ll issue you media passes and coordinate with Campus Security to ensure your productive visit. We may also assign a staff member to accompany you at our discretion—this can often be helpful when engaging with the campus community.

Photography and video

We appreciate media interest in photography or videography on campus. Please remember that our campus is private property. You must obtain advance permission from the Communications office before conducting any such work.

Our office will set out the terms for any such work to provide clarity in advance. You’ll be asked to respect the right of all students, faculty, staff, and campus guests not to be photographed, filmed, or interviewed without their express consent. This includes B-roll and footage of passersby. It’s especially important with regard to students, who may not have experience interacting with the media.

As long as a Williams person or group has agreed to be interviewed or sought coverage for their event we’ll typically grant you access as long as you comply with the relevant policies.

If you’d like to record an interview or other activity, the Communications team can also help you identify viable campus locations with the least possible background noise.

Event Access

Please see our events calendar to understand which events are open to the public during Covid.

Media who cover our events are welcome to conduct interviews before or after the program, in an approved outdoor location that doesn’t obstruct audience egress. Interviews are prohibited inside the venue or during the program.

Special permits for unloading and loading can be requested from Communications along with your credentials, and will be issued if space permits. Vehicles without permits must park in visitor parking or off campus.

Please know that some of our guests speakers and performers contractually forbid the recording or dissemination of their appearances. For this reason, recording devices of any kind are prohibited at events without advance permission from the Office of Communications.

Communications staff aren’t always present at events and are typically unable to grant last-minute or on-site requests.

Speeches

We archive major speeches, op-eds, and campus communications from the college president on the President’s website and welcome you to quote from them, subject to copyright and fair use and with appropriate credit.

Permission is required to republish pieces in full, and is only rarely granted.

Williams doesn’t collect speeches by guest lecturers and artists in a centralized manner. An event’s sponsoring department, office, or group may be able to help you obtain copies of any remarks. The College Archives will sometimes also have the text of campus speeches available. We post video of select guest lectures and performances on the Williams YouTube page, as well.

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