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If you're looking for the broadest reach for your story, don't turn to TV. The radio airwaves are the place to be, says Charlie Kaye, executive producer for CBS Radio News.
With a captive audience of commuters, morning broadcasts in particular offer astronomical listener numbers. CBS estimates its cumulative audience (including repeat listeners) for
radio news broadcasts throughout the day at a staggering 23 billion listeners. CBS broadcasts a five-minute news report on the hour, heard on network stations across the country.
Its news feed syndication service also feeds material for inclusion in local programming every hour.
Content/Contacts
Breaking news is your best bet for CBS radio broadcasts. Kaye doesn't go for what he calls "bizarre features," but the network will cover events like major conferences or
meetings that have national impact.
Kaye is the primary contact for futures pitches coming to CBS Radio. He handles feature planning as well as special events coverage. Reach Kaye in the newsroom at 212/375-3615
or via email at [email protected]. He prefers email contact - no follow up calls to email releases, please.
An assignment editor is on duty 24 hours a day and can be reached in the CBS newsroom at 212/975-3615.
Comments
Kaye increasingly notices what he politely terms "obfuscation" among PR pros. He receives calls from communicators, who, for example, tell him, "I represent a major
pharmaceutical company, which is working with the American Heart Association." Don't attempt to disguise the identity of a client by naming a highly esteemed partner -- you won't
get away with it. "Be candid," Kaye suggests, and you'll have a much better chance of coverage.
Pitch Tips
"There aren't too many cities where you can't hear CBS News On the Hour," Kaye says. Hence there is no excuse for poorly targeted pitches. "Have a knowledge of what our
broadcasts sound like, what we do and do not use," he advises.
Kaye works in a newsroom with back-to-back deadlines so it's no surprise that his dream pitch is one that offers instant gratification: a caller who has heard a broadcast and
has an expert source by the phone to speak with him on the subject. "It's helpful to have a client immediately, not in 24 hours. If you know something is coming up, pitch it as
far in advance as possible. If you have an embargoed story, we'd love to see it. We'll honor the embargo as long as no one else breaks it."
Constant deadlines also mean Kaye is a sucker for brevity and a stickler for accuracy. "I get calls from people who can't get to the point," he says. Little things such as
nonconformity with basic grammar and spelling rules drive Kaye up the wall.
In The Pipeline
Breaking news is Kaye's business. The rule of the game for any PR pro pitching him is to stay on top of the news hour by hour. "I receive many very good pitches, like calls
from people who hear that a prominent celebrity has had a heart attack and they pick up the phone and pitch a cardiologist. They're very savvy."
CBS Radio doesn't do much enterprise reporting, but it is planning for coverage of several major upcoming stories. The network is prepping for the McVeigh execution on May 16;
coverage will include a variety of special reports and interviews with expert sources. CBS is looking for experts who can discuss the execution itself as well as the death
penalty.
The Olympic Games 2002 are also in the pipeline, as well as upcoming political events and medical conferences.