Comments on: The shape of press releases to come

By: Mark McLaughlin

Mark McLaughlin — Wed, 27 Sep 2006 06:08:00 +0000

As usual, Mr. Holtz is correct.
The News Release is not dead.
It’s just being presented, delivered and filed in a new way.
The technical methods of disseminating the old tried ‘n true News Release are changing dramatically. There’s no question of that.
When I was in News and on the Assignment Desk, I was appalled by the same criticisms Mr. Holtz mentions. That’s the problem of the writer of the news release - not the release itself. If a release is sent to inappropriate editors and reporters, the release is not at fault. It’s the human element that’s to blame (and it always will be).
The bottom line here is that the “release” is not dead - it’s just evolving.

By: David Pincus

David Pincus — Thu, 08 Jun 2006 20:17:52 +0000

After reading Shel’s thoughtful post, and the responses thus far, I have to say I’m more than a little encouraged by the apparent direction — and merger — of the traditional news release and the many new technology forms. My feeling of optimism comes from what I perceive as a blurring of boundaries and differences between the old and new forms of preparing and distributing the so-called news release. The major benefit of this melding process underway is, I believe, the shifting of emphasis from management’s message to constituencies’ perceptions/needs.

Of course, I guess I should admit my long-held bias, which I espoused regularly in the classes I taught in the realm of public relations, that the news release, as we have long known it, is a relic and should be abandoned. Replacement forms, whatever shape they take and whatever label given them, should — again, my view — dispense with the formalities and archaic structure of top-down, organization-heavy news releases and go with forms that highlight data, information, and viewpoints that are designed to tweak the primary interests of the media BECAUSE they would unquestionably do the same of the media’s readership/viewership. A simple fact sheet, for instance, perhaps presented in descending order of importance with an accompanying clarifying “pitch” note, is no doubt perceived more positively by media than anything resembling a pat, one-sided presentation of the organization’s prime interests. Heck, nobody likes to be told what they should consider important, much less how they ought to say it, right? Certainly that’s true of journalists, in my experience.

It’s all about perceptions . . . So, what’s new?

By: Wilma Mathews

Wilma Mathews — Wed, 31 May 2006 18:23:59 +0000

Ease-of-use is wonderful. To echo others: if there is not news, it doesn’t matter what the format is.
Remember: you can put a tutu and a tiara on a pig and maybe even teach it to dance but it’s still a pig.

Thanks.

By: Rich Barger, ABC, APR

Rich Barger, ABC, APR — Mon, 29 May 2006 14:49:25 +0000

You’re right, Shel. Before we spend lots of time figuring whether this or that format or template or delivery mechanism is best, we oughta have something to say.

On PR Squared, a blogger identified as PR Minority echoed your earlier comments:

The challenge in my opinion is not getting clients to try the new format…it is in getting them to stop issuing releases without news. Poorly written news releases with little to no news value are what brought the format under fire in the first place.

I first saw the SHIFT Communications Social Media Press Release last week. SHIFT says:

This radically different format is more à la carte menu than standard press release. In a non-linear fashion, it ties together narrative, quotes and various multimedia (RSS, social bookmarking, photos, etc.) on one page. Journalists & bloggers can “re-mix” the elements into the story THEY want to write.

I’ll talk a bit more about formatting separately.

By: Kelsey Mullen

Kelsey Mullen — Thu, 25 May 2006 16:09:37 +0000

Wow. I am a public relations major based out of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. I am currently on my first work term, set up by the college.

Working for this organization and following the standard procedure for press releases has made me see the need for adaptation in today’s world of media relations.

I printed off your template, and really agreed with the things that you said. I doubt that I have the clout around here to actually implement something like this, but I am certainly going to share this with my graduating class, and keep it with me as I venture on.

Thanks.

By: Eric Bergman, ABC, APR

Eric Bergman, ABC, APR — Wed, 24 May 2006 20:40:16 +0000

Shel,

As always … thoughtful and articulate.

I followed the links in your post (and the links in theirs … and so on … and so on) and took at look at the SHIFT template.

We used to send the same thing out by courier: relevant written information to the journalist(s) we hoped to attract (with emphasis on relevance to those journalists); a photo; some form of corporate identity; audiotaped sound bites (which we used to refer to as “actualities”); and B-roll.

Back then, if I remember, journalists complained that we didn’t do our homework on them (and I read at least three links following your thread from bloggers with the same complaint), and PR people tended to ignore that complaint.

The house above the ground may look at little different with technology. But the foundation on which success rests is exactly the same.