If you subscribe to a service that gives you leads from journalists who are looking for certain types of sources, pay attention to the way the reporter has written the query. Peter Shankman, whose free leads service called “Help a Reporter Out,” flags this terrific pitch from Jenny Schmitt, who works for the Georgia State… Read More
Media Relations
7 resources make it easy for journalists to find you
Even the most carefully written publicity plan can be downright frustrating if you pitch journalist after journalist and you hear nothing back. I just finished a free article Find Journalists Using These 7 Resources. It lists seven resources that Publicity Hounds can use to get in front of journalists. One is a free leads service. Four are subscirption-based leads services.… Read More
NPR Books Watch Contest goal: Get more authors on NPR
When National Public Radio interviews an author, it’s almost a ticket to the top of the Amazon.com lists. But the way book publicist Yen Cheong calculates it, the chances of an author landing an interview on National Public Radio is 15 times harder than getting into Harvard. Cheong, the assistant director of publicity for Viking and Penguin Books in… Read More
Know journalists who Twitter? Add them to this wiki
Everybody, it seems, is Twittering these days. And for good reason. You can follow your friends who are Twittering, use Twitter numerous ways in your business (more about this in a minute), and even search for other Twitterers using specific keywords. Last week, Publicity Hound Harry Hoover announced that he started compiling a list of Twittering journalists and media… Read More
What else should American have done after canceling flights?
Here’s the list of public relations tactics American Airlines adopted after canceling more than 3,000 flights this month: According to PRWeek, it: —Enlisted its seven-person PR team, other staffers and Weber Shandwick, its PR firm, to inform the public about the reasons for the delay. —Handed out press releases to customers at some of its largest hubs. —Sent… Read More
When Journalists Snub You
You pitch a story to a top-tier newspaper. The reporter calls you. You bend over backwards to help with the story. And when it’s finally printed, you’re crestfallen to learn that the reporter never even mentioned your name. The first time it happened to me, I wanted to call the reporter’s boss and complain. And… Read More
Journalists search LinkedIn for ideas, topics, trends—and dirt
If you have a profile on LinkedIn, don’t be surprised if a journalist calls and says she found you there. Could be she’s an investigative reporter who’s digging up dirt on your former employer. Or maybe she’s just looking for story ideas, did a search at the site and your profile popped up. Check out 10… Read More
Journalists using social networking sites to find sources
The 2008 PRWeek/PRNewswire Media Survey reveals some interesting results about the way journalists do their jobs. When they hunt for sources and do research before writing, many of them use three popular social networking sites to save time: LinedIn, MySpace and Facebook. PRWeek surveyed more than 1,200 journalists and bloggers. One out of four say they have a… Read More
‘Help a Reporter’ connects journalists, sources
If you’re hoping to connect with journalists and broadcasters who might interview you for a story, or include you in a TV show they’re planning, here’s another resource. It’s a website called “If I can Help a Reporter Out,” and it was created by Peter Shankman, owner of a New York PR firm. His many journalist… Read More
Pitch the Wire Services
One of the best ways to get your story into dozens, perhaps even hundreds of newspapers across the U.S.–all at the same time–is to pitch one of the wire services. The Associated Press, the world’s largest news agency, is a great place to start. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio… Read More