TV Peeves. Last week, PR NEWS caught up with Robert Long, VP, News for the DC-based NBC affiliate WRC-TV, and gave him the opportunity to rant about the biggest
mistakes media relations pros make in approaching his station. His response:
"There's always some really junior type whose job it is to call everyone over and over and make sure you have this...and is it on your schedule? Well my answer is
f*** you. Maybe this person has an aggressive, unreasonable client who is demanding to know how much coverage they're going to get. Well, I don't know. It depends on
solar flares and the depth of the San Andreas Fault. I think the pressure some clients put on their PR people causes the PR people to be obnoxious to us. It's self-defeating.
And people routinely call me because I'm the news director. Well, those people are clueless. News directors don't assign stories or entertain pitches. That's what planning
editors do."
Editor's Note: You can avert Long's wrath by pitching the right person at the station: planning editor Ede Jermin. She prefers faxes: 202/885-4104.