PR and Journalism: A Rocky Relationship

One of the very first things we learn in our Public Relations degree is the importance of media relations and media coverage. How to correctly write media releases is practically drilled into our brains, and a whole unit is devoted to managing and creating relationships with media and journalists. It is one of the most important tasks that any PR professional must master. So I was truly excited when I was given the opportunity to dive into media release writing recently at my internship.

I am completing my internship at a theatre, and was asked by my supervisor to produce a media release announcing the AUSLAN interpreted performances of two of the plays featured in the upcoming season. I was ready to apply the skills I picked up in PR Techniques and create the best media release I have ever produced. 

Once I was happy with it, my supervisor looked over it and gave her approval. We sent out the media release and then all we could do was simply wait.

I was anxious, yet excited when it came to performing my media monitoring duties the next week. My supervisor told me the article had some interest and I began checking some local papers. And there it was! A half-page news story based on the media release I had written! It was my first time actually experiencing what it was like to gain some media coverage, however when I read the article my excitement slowly went away. 

Firstly, the name of the play was spelt incorrectly. What was supposed to be ‘Armour’ was spelt ‘Amour’ and on top of that, the date of the performance in the article was also incorrect. Although the article was there and we gained some coverage, all of the vital information was incorrect. I was extremely disappointed and there wasn’t anything we could do to correct the mistake at this point. 

In spite of the fact that this was extremely frustrating for both myself and my supervisor, it has taught me some vital lessons. Firstly, that PR professionals don’t have total control over the media coverage produced. Despite a media release with the correct information and a follow-up phone call with the journalist, the mistakes were still published. Therefore, it is vital to have contingencies in place if things don’t always go to plan. 

Secondly, the relationship between journalists and PR professionals is a vital one. PR professionals can do all they can to generate coverage, however it is the journalist that produces the final piece. Therefore, relationships with journalists must be managed and open communication throughout the media release distribution process is crucial. 

Thirdly, you must be able to bounce back. Although this was unfortunate situation and left me feeling down, PR professionals must be able to move on a do their best to let the public know the correct information. We continued to promote the AUSLAN performance through social media and our website before discovering that another article about the performances was published on ArtsHub, a national publication. This was extremely gratifying, as this article was more likely to reach a larger audience.  

Overall, my first time writing a media release in a professional context has been a huge learning experience for me, illustrating that even when you have the best intentions, it doesn’t always go to plan. However, there’s always next time, and something even better may be waiting around the corner!