Respect the Style of Reporters

(Cont'd)

...a credible level of journalistic integrity. They want to uncover a great news story and tell it in an accurate and compelling style that impacts their audience.

Enter the public relations professional. You can help or you can hinder. The best way to help the reporter to get their story, (which is your story), is to understand and respect what they need for their jobs each day. If you have never worked in a newsroom but now work with reporters, here is some insight that can help you to build relationships with the media:

1 -		Make your initial call when you don’t have a story. Call them to quickly introduce yourself without asking for a favor. Know what issues or communities they cover (check out the website first) so you don’t waste their time. Do your homework.
2 -		Avoid calling during deadlines. Newspapers reporters typically work late morning through early evening (11:00 a.m.-7:00 p.m.). By 4:00 It’s crunch time for the daily newspapers. Call mid-day or lunchtime. Weekly newspaper reporters are usually on deadline on Monday and Tuesday, so avoid calling at the beginning of the week. Radio reporters may have live newscasts on the top and bottom of the hour, and coupled with the chaotic morning and afternoon drive, the best times to call radio stations are 10:15 or 10:45 a.m., 1:15 or 1:45 p.m. This way they are done with their newscasts and are not yet racing to prepare for the next one. Mid-days are typically slower in radio. TV reporters usually meet with their producers around 10:00 a.m. to look at the news of the day, breaking news and assignments for reporters and camera crews. Everything depends on breaking news, which cannot be planned. Again, late mornings are usually best to call TV stations.
3 -		Ask questions. You will quickly learn a reporter's style and how best to work with them by asking basic questions. Do they prefer e-mail pitches, is it ok to send digital pictures, what time is best to follow-up, what specifically are you looking for? Some reporters will say they prefer a bulleted pitch e-mail of less than one paragraph instead of press release. Some may listen to a pitch you left on a voicemail and others will completely ignore it. By asking questions as how best to work with them, it shows that you respect their time and job and want to help.
When you respect the deadlines and needs of individual reporters, you will increase the likelihood of getting your stories covered. When you help the reporters do their jobs, your job will become easier as well.