To get your story placed in some of the 1,500 publications and broadcast outlets that cover health issues, pitch ideas to this niche medium with releases that are unique, newsworthy and stand out among the hundreds of others.
"I get 200-250 pages of faxes each day," says Christy Feig, health/medical producer at CNN, "Don't tell me in the second paragraph why I need to look at [your pitch]." The most important question a PR person can ask is: "What will make my pitch stand out?"
Feig and other of the nation's top health, medical and science reporters spoke on the topic, in Washington, D.C. on Sept. 17 at the National Press Club.
Reporters at this workshop gave PR and media relations folks inside tips for achieving media placement and gaining access to top media outlets.
Although knowing how to pitch the perfect story idea to each media outlet is not possible; here are some solid tips from the experts that will make this effort more successful:
- Do not send "breaking news" one week ahead of time - that's not considered breaking news;
- Read, listen to or watch the medium you're pitching or trying to get placement in for your organization. Journalists will hang up on you if you call and ask, "What kind of stories do you write about?" They don't have secretaries - they are the ones answering the phones;
- Learn the reporters' deadlines. There's nothing they loathe more than when a PR person calls as they await a breaking news story. The best time for most of these reporters is before 9 a.m. and after 5 p.m.
- Pitch ideas that read like a news story instead of like a press release;
- Be ready to provide health reporters with patients and doctors to interview for their pieces (for broadcast this means on-air interviews).
The program's panelists were journalists from top media outlets in Washington, D.C. area, including: Wayne Barbin, health/medical producer for WRC-TV4 (NBC) in Washington, D.C.; Michelle Komes Dolge, news director for WTOP; Christy Feig, health/medical producer for CNN; Maggie Fox, health and science correspondent for Reuters; Kristin Jensen, FDA/medical reporter for Bloomberg; Steve Sternberg, medical writer at USA Today; and moderator John Schwartz, science/technology reporter for Washington Post.
No Magic Bullet
In addition to honing your story-pitching skills, earn the respect of journalists by doing your homework on the best methods to reach them. Some reporters, like Feig and Fox, want faxes; others, like Jensen, prefer email.
With every reporter liking some methods and loathing others, how does one know whom to fax, to email and to phone? Therein lies the challenge to successfully gaining entree into the fourth estate.
The trick is to compile a list of all the reporters and news organizations you want to reach.
Know their deadlines, how they like to receive ideas by and what stories they're seeking. Never call them directly for any of this information: research and dig.
"You must tell stories differently for every news organization and pitch them differently," says WTOP's Dolge. She continues, "watch what we do and how we do it and then you'll know what we're looking for."
Love-Hate Relationship
The relationship between PR professionals and reporters is complicated, unstable and touchy. Reporters, who are taking calls all day long while trying to produce stories, get frustrated with PR pitches and questions like, "Did you get my fax?"
Schwartz says the relationship is tenuous, but necessary.
"It's like a really bad dating relationship," he says. "We don't call, we don't write, we don't return phone calls, but you better wait by the phone, because when we need you, we want it."
Most journalists agree that the number of PR executives calling and faxing ideas is overwhelming.
"You cannot imagine how much pressure there is," said Fox, who logged her phone calls one day that week. "I got 28 calls from PR and only two produced stories. Four of these phone calls were before 7 a.m., and half of the calls were follow-up. I plead for mercy."
Citing Johns Hopkins University as the best PR professionals she's dealt with, Fox suggests hiring former reporters as the key to successful media relations.
"They write the story like news, not PR. I want to see the news upfront; I don't want to sift through the release," she says.
The workshop was sponsored by Ruberry Communications (RC) and US Newswire. Ruberry Communications is a PR agency specializing in health and medical issues. RC's clients include the American Public Health Association, American Red Cross and Health System Change.
Earning High Marks With Health Reporters
It's not easy to get on the good side of a busy health reporter who covers the industry for a major media outlet but here are some key pieces of advice from Washington, D.C., area journalists who spoke at a recent media relations conference at the National Press Club.
Wayne Barbin
Health/Medical Producer, WRC-TV4
Pet Peeve: Calling him before 6:30 p.m. (He's on deadline all day)
Preferred method of contact: Fax: 202/885-4071
Michelle Komes Dolge
News Director, WTOP Radio
Pet Peeve: Media relations execs who don't know the medium they're pitching
Preferred method of contact: Fa:, 202/895-5140
Christy Feig
Health/Medical producer, CNN
Pet Peeve: Calling to ask what stories she covers
Preferred method of contact: Fax: 202/898-7604
Maggie Fox
Health and Science correspondent, Reuters
Pet Peeve: Rude phone manners
Preferred method of contact: Fax or email: 202/898-8383; [email protected]
Kristin Jensen
FDA/Medial reporter, Bloomberg
Pet Peeve: Teleconference phone calls
Preferred method of contact: email: [email protected]
Steve Sternberg
Medical writer, USA Today
Pet Peeve: Will not cover stories on national days like "National Heart Attack Week"
Preferred method of contact: email: [email protected]