SOW- Daily Summary.pdf

Statement of Work (SOW): Daily Press Summary Services for the Public Diplomacy Section

1.Introduction

The Public Diplomacy Section at the U.S. Embassy in Brazil is seeking a qualified service provider to deliver Daily Press Summary services through a competitive procurement process. This contract aims to ensure timely, accurate, and high-quality media monitoring and reporting that captures relevant coverage of political, economic, social, and cultural developments in Brazil. The selected provider will be responsible for producing comprehensive daily summaries based on national, regional, and local news sources, with content delivered in both Portuguese and English. These summaries will support the Embassy’s strategic communication and public diplomacy efforts by providing insights into local media narratives and public discourse.

2.Overview of the Daily Press Summary

The Daily Press Summary is a vital product of the Public Diplomacy Section at the U.S.

Embassy in Brazil. It provides concise and timely insights into how the Brazilian media reports on political, economic, social, cultural, and bilateral issues of strategic interest.

The summary is based on news coverage from national, regional, and local outlets across Brazil, and occasionally from international sources referencing Brazil. The objective is to deliver a digestible, high-quality, and visually engaging report in both Portuguese and English to inform internal stakeholders and support strategic planning and messaging.

The service provider will be responsible for two primary deliverables:

1. Portuguese-language media summaries, delivered by 7:30 a.m. (Brasília time) on business days.

2. English-language media summaries, delivered by 12:00 p.m. (Brasília time) on weekends and U.S. Embassy holidays (a list maintained at br.usembassy.gov).

Each daily report must be delivered via email in a newsletter or attachment format that is clear, easy to navigate, and formatted to be readable in both plain text and graphic-rich versions. Whenever possible, reports should include visual elements such as graphics or screenshots from original news sources.

https://br.usembassy.gov/

The report will be organized under the following core categories:

• U.S. Mission in the News: Brazilian press coverage directly referencing the U.S.

Embassy and Consulates.

• U.S.–Brazil Relations: News on bilateral issues not directly tied to Embassy actions.

• Political: Coverage of domestic political developments, elections, policy, and social equity topics.

• Economic: Business, financial, infrastructure, energy, innovation, and trade-related stories.

• Emerging Technology: 5G, cybersecurity, AI, tech startups, space, and frontier technologies.

• Security: Public security, crime, drug interdiction, and transnational criminal networks.

• Foreign Affairs: Brazil’s international relations and multilateral engagements.

• Brazil in International News: Coverage of Brazil in U.S. or global media outlets.

Each summary should consist of approximately three succinct sentences and must include:

• Direct links to the original news stories (including multimedia when applicable),

• Key quotes from officials when relevant, particularly in bilateral contexts,

• Multiple headlines (1–5) from different sources covering the same story.

Longer summaries are expected for priority content, such as:

• Interviews or public statements by the U.S. Ambassador or Consuls General,

• Official remarks by the President of Brazil,

• Breaking news requiring contextual background,

• Stories representing diverse viewpoints or high public engagement.

Content should be updated daily and must highlight what is new in recurring or ongoing news items. If a story remains in the news cycle with no updates, include only the headline and a note indicating that no new information has emerged.

The report should be accessible via a secure, subscriber-only website, with each day's summary hosted at a unique URL. The contractor must restrict access to approved email domains, ensure HTTPS protection, and safeguard subscriber data according to industry standards.

On occasion, the Embassy may request extended, ad hoc media monitoring and thematic analysis on high-profile or emergent issues. This additional coverage will be broader and comparative in scope, synthesizing multiple sources across platforms (print, digital, and broadcast).

3.News Sources

The Contractor is expected to monitor and report on news content from a wide range of reputable Brazilian media outlets. To ensure the most relevant and influential coverage is captured, preference must be given in the following order: television, followed by print/online, and then radio.

The media sources to be prioritized include, but are not limited to:

Television(TV) Priority should be given to top-rated national programs. The following channels and programs are considered essential:

• Band: Jornal da Band

• TV Globo: Jornal Nacional, Bom Dia Brasil, Fantástico

• GloboNews: Jornal das Dez, Estudio I,

• RecordTV: Jornal da Record

• RecordNews,

• CNN Brasil

• CNBC Brasil

The Contractor must include links to relevant video clips whenever broadcast coverage is referenced, ensuring the clips correspond directly to the news item summarized.

Print/Online Media A broad range of national and regional publications should be monitored to ensure comprehensive political, economic, and social coverage:

• Folha de S. Paulo

• O Estado de S. Paulo

• O Globo

• G1

• Correio Braziliense

• Valor Econômico

• Veja, Época, IstoÉ

• R7, DefesaNet, Crusoé, UOL.com, O Antagonista, Zero Hora

Radio While used as a supplementary source, the following stations must also be monitored:

• Voz do Brasil

• CBN Radio

• Jovem Pan

• Band News FM

Upon request, the Contractor may be required to monitor and summarize additional news outlets, especially when coverage involves U.S. government officials, Embassy/Consulate programs, or interviews published in niche, regional, or sector-specific platforms.

4. Formatting Guidelines

The layout and structure of the emailed Daily Press Summary must adhere to user-centered design principles to ensure clarity, readability, and rapid access to relevant information.

While the thematic categories listed in this Statement of Work represent the primary content areas, the final formatting and presentation will be determined in consultation between the U.S. Embassy and the Contractor. The following baseline formatting standards are expected:

Font and Readability

• Use clean, standard fonts (e.g., Arial, Calibri, Times New Roman) that are widely compatible and visually accessible.

• The layout should be easy to follow, visually engaging, and optimized for both desktop and mobile viewing.

Headlines

• Headlines must be clearly distinguished from the body text—either through bolding, font size, or spacing.

• The media outlet must be directly associated with the headline.

• Acceptable formatting examples:

o Meirelles: Potential GDP to be 4% in four years – O Globo o GDP may grow 4% in four years, Meirelles says – Folha de S. Paulo

Category Labels

• Categories (e.g., Political, Economic, U.S.–Brazil Relations) should be clearly marked and prominently displayed, as they serve as the first-level content filter for users.

Publication and Author References

• When referencing a publication or journalist in the body of the summary, names should be shortened and simplified for readability.

• Example:

o Op-ed by Clovis Rossi: Failure goes beyond jails – Folha de S. Paulo

Writing about the massacre in Manaus, Rossi compares the total number of people killed by police officers in the U.K. in 2016 (five), while noting that in Brazil, in 2015, local police killed nine people per day. He also noted that, in Brazil, 393 police officers were killed in 2015.

“This is an unsurmountable abyss of civilization,” he opines.

Hyperlinks

• Hyperlinks to original sources must be clearly visible and easily clickable.

• Each summary should include at least one direct link to the original article.

The final design should support intuitive navigation, rapid scanning, and reliable access to primary sources. Formatting will be reviewed and finalized collaboratively with Embassy stakeholders during the contract implementation phase.

5.Sequence of Topics

Categories should be sequenced in the order laid out under "Content" above in the emailed report. Articles should be tagged on the website to allow for subscription, filtering, categorization, and aggregated reporting. However, the default view for dynamic content would be in the order.

Within each category, news summaries should be prioritized based on the level of reporting (front page news at the top). For U.S.-related news, reference to senior U.S. Embassy and Consulate officials or U.S. Government officials should be followed by more generic references to U.S. policy or actions.

6. Style Guide

Officials

• President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva should be referred to as “President Lula” the first time he is mentioned in an item, then as “Lula” for any subsequent mentions in the same item.

• President Donald J. Trump must always be referred to as “President Trump.”

• Former Brazilian presidents should be referred to as “former President” followed by their complete name the first time they are mentioned in an item. Subsequent mentions should omit their first name. For example, “former President Jair Bolsonaro” the first time he is mentioned in an item, then “former President Bolsonaro” for subsequent mentions in the same item.

• Former U.S. presidents must always be referred to as “former President” followed by their last names. For example, “former President Biden” or “former President Obama.” They should never be referred to as simply “Biden” or “Obama.”

• Secretary of State Marco Rubio should be referred to as “Secretary Rubio.”

• U.S. cabinet-level officials should be referred to with their department title then their last name. For example, “Secretary of Defense Hegseth”, “Secretary of the Interior Burgum,” or “Secretary of Energy Wright.”

• All U.S. elected representatives should be referred to by their title and complete name the first time they appear in an item, then by their title and last name in subsequent references. For example, “Senator Lindsey Graham” then “Senator Graham,” “Representative Jim Jordan” then “Representative Jordan”, “Governor Gavin Newsom” then “Governor Newsom.”

• All non-U.S. and non-Brazilian heads of state should be referred to by their nationality and full name the first time they are referenced in an item. Their first name should be omitted in subsequent references. For example, “French President Emmanuel Macron”, then “French President Macron.”

• Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro should be referred to by his name only. He should not be referred to as “President Nicolas Maduro.”

• The government led by Nicolas Maduro should be referred to as “the Maduro regime.”

Members of the government led by Nicolas Maduro should be referred to as “Venezuelan government officials.”

• Presidents may be referred to by only their last name in an item’s headline. For example, “Lula and Biden meet to discuss trade.”

Numerals

• All percentiles should use the word “percent” instead of the symbol %. For example, 20 percent.

• All numerals less than 11 should be written out. For example, “five cars,” “seven percent,” “ten suspects,” “11 trees.”

Governments

• The United States must always be written out when used as a noun. “U.S.” must only be used as an adjective. Use “U.S.” as an adjective to describe nouns related to the United States Federal Government. Use “American” as an adjective to describe nouns related to the people and culture of the United States. For example, “The United States condemned the terrorist attack.” “U.S. foreign policy supports freedom of expression.” “Many Brazilians appreciate American culture.”

• Capitalize both words when referring to a government administration. For example, “Trump Administration” or “Lula Administration.”

• Do not capitalize the word government when proceeded by an adjective. For example, “the U.S. government” or “Brazilian government officials.”

7. Contractor Furnished Property

1. The Contractor shall perform all required duties at own premises and provide all the necessary equipment, stationary, communication tools, etc., needed to deliver the required services.

2. The Contractor shall be responsible to purchase the newspapers on a daily basis, as well as to purchase online subscriptions, and provide invoices to the COR.

3. The Government shall reimburse the Contractor on a monthly basis the cost of newspapers and subscriptions.