Issuing a press release to announce an agency’s transition is identified as an important communication tool to help inform stakeholders of NIBRS crime data. The NCS-X team has identified five key components of writing a press release:

1. Describe what is changing;
2. Explain why the change is necessary;
3. Communicate when the change is happening;
4. Describe how the change will affect the community; and
5. Emphasize the benefits of the change.

The document also provides sample text and formatting to illustrate these five elements in a developed press release.