PART THREE
THE PUBLICS
CHAPTER NINE
PRINT MEDIA RELATIONS
Abundance of Outlets
with Challenges
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Electronic media growth
Decline in readership in U.S.
Faith and trust in the media limited
1,480 dailies with 9 million circulation
 121 million daily and 127 million Sunday readership
 According to the Newspaper Association of America
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10,857 magazines published in U.S. with
readership up in specialty publications
500 Cable and broadcast television channels
9-2
Top Ten Daily Newspapers in the
United States
9-3
Public relations professionals
rely on the media:
As an important public for their efforts
 To secure positive publicity for their clients
 To assist in promoting and defending their
client as the need dictates
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9-4
Question
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Can you identify the promotion efforts?
 The
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City of New York
Can you identify the defense efforts?
 SARS
9-5
Can’t we all just get along?
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A question at the forefront…..with media and
practitioners.
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Role of the media is to watch, look, listen, and question officials
Gather and report the news as objectively as possible
9-6
Public relations professionals
and the media should have a
reciprocal relationship built on
respect, fairness, and trust.
9-7
Principles for dealing with the
media:
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A reporter is a reporter
You are the organization
There is no standard
issue reporter
Treat journalists
professionally
Don’t sweat the
skepticism
Don’t “buy” a journalist
Become a trusted source
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Talk when not “selling”
Don’t expect “news”
agreement
Don’t cop an attitude
Never lie
Read the paper
9-8
Question:
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What is the difference between publicity
and advertising?
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Hint: Credibility
9-9
Advertising
Costs money for time or space
 Content is controlled
 Size is controlled
 Location dictates where it will appear
 Reach is exposure to households
 Frequency or times it is run

9-10
Publicity
Uncontrolled
 Editorially reviewed
 No direct costs for placement, like
advertising
 Appears as news, not advertisement
 Perception is more objective
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9-11
How can publicity be used by the
practitioner?
To announce a new product or service, or
reinvigorate an older one
 Provide an explanation about a complex
product
 Requires little to no budget
 Can enhance the organizational reputation
 Provides a venue for crisis response
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9-12
Publicity should remain a strong
part of the organization’s overall
marketing plan.
Practitioners must actively place
publicity through gatekeepers. This
practice is called pitching.
9-13
Guidelines for Pitching
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Know deadlines for each media outlet
Generally, write don’t call
Direct the release to a specific person or editor
Determine how the reporter prefers contact
Don’t badger
Consider exclusives carefully
Do your own calling
Don’t send clips of other stories about your client
Develop a relationship
Never lie
9-14
Pitching Online—A different space
but relationship building is still
important
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Use a media database that delivers releases to cyberbase venues
Send an e-mail briefly inquiring whether e-mail is appropriate for
news announcements.
Target, personalize the pitch
Links are valuable to your website
E-mail newsletters for targeted publicity
Check online news cites and Rueters
Check Web libraries and monitor discussion forums
Cyber media tours can be valuable to many outlets
9-15
Wire Services
Traditional Wire service Associated Press
has 15,000 clients worldwide
 Financial Wires are Dow Jones, Reuters,
and Bloomberg
 PR Newswire, Business Wire, and Internet
Wire are paid wires.
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9-16
Measurement of Publicity
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Media Directories such as Bacon’s Publicity
Checker
Press Monitoring Bureaus such as Burrelle’s and
Luce
Broadcast Transcription Services
Media Distribution Services
Content Analysis Services such as Medialink
9-17
Interviews
Interviewee role is to convey key
messages
 Interviewee role is to “get a good story”
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9-18
Say what?
Interview Do’s and Don’ts
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Do homework in advance
Relax
Speak in personal terms
Welcome the naïve question
Answer questions briefly and directly
Don’t bluff
State facts and back up generalities
If the reporter is promised further information, provide it quickly
There is no such thing as “off the record”
Tell the truth
9-19
Press Conferences
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Press conferences provide a venue to
communicate in person real news. Can be
used for annual meetings or major
announcements.
9-20
Exercise
You’ve just been assigned to pitch the
upcoming tour of an upstart rock band.
What would you need to know to pitch
them? Where would you pitch? How
would you handle interviews and press
conferences?
 Compare your answers to the following
list, how did you do?
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9-21
Guidelines for Press Conferences
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Don’t play favorites, notify all representatives
Notify the media by mail well in advance
Follow up early and often
Schedule the conference in midmorning to accommodate schedules
and deadlines
Hold conference in a meeting room
Time should be allotted and stated in advance
Keep the speaker away from reporters before the conference
Prepare materials to complement the speaker’s presentation
Remember to prepare for TV
Let the reporters know when the end has come
Cue the reinforcements
9-22