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PART THREE THE PUBLICS. CHAPTER NINE PRINT MEDIA RELATIONS. Abundance of Outlets with Challenges. 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
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PART THREETHE PUBLICS CHAPTER NINE PRINT MEDIA RELATIONS
Abundance of Outletswith Challenges • 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 • 10,857 magazines published in U.S. with readership up in specialty publications • 500 Cable and broadcast television channels
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
Question • Can you identify the promotion efforts? • The City of New York • Can you identify the defense efforts? • SARS
Can’t we all just get along? • A question at the forefront…..with media and practitioners. • Role of the media is to watch, look, listen, and question officials • Gather and report the news as objectively as possible
Public relations professionals and the media should have a reciprocal relationship built on respect, fairness, and trust.
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 Talk when not “selling” Don’t expect “news” agreement Don’t cop an attitude Never lie Read the paper Principles for dealing with the media:
Question: • What is the difference between publicity and advertising? • Hint: Credibility
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
Publicity • Uncontrolled • Editorially reviewed • No direct costs for placement, like advertising • Appears as news, not advertisement • Perception is more objective
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
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.
Guidelines for Pitching • 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
Pitching Online—A different space but relationship building is still important • 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
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.
Measurement of Publicity • 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
Interviews • Interviewee role is to convey key messages • Interviewee role is to “get a good story”
Say what?Interview Do’s and Don’ts • 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
Press Conferences • Press conferences provide a venue to communicate in person real news. Can be used for annual meetings or major announcements.
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?
Guidelines for Press Conferences • 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