Maintaining positive and professional relationships with Journalists.

Maintaining positive and professional relationships with Journalists.

The value of connections in the news industry.

 

During my placement at Tourism Western Australia working in the Corporate Communications department I have observed that having a positive and professional relationship with journalists is vital to achieving successful results for your organisation.

 

Both the Direct and Manager of the Corporate Communications department were journalists prior to working in house for various organisations. Due to their prior experiences working in the news industry they have good foundations with a various media connections and an understanding of the journalists role. I am impressed by how many journalists they know well and I definitely want to ensure that I build diverse connections in the industry when I begin my profession.

Today I thought I would examine why obtaining and maintaining a positive, professional relationship with journalists is important to your organisation. This topic brings me back to the media relations unit that I undertook in second year.

Journalist disseminate news, informing the general public. Traditionally the relationship between the two professions has been uneasy. Due to pressures in media such as the audience's desire for instant news and staff cuts, journalists have been beginning to increasingly rely on public relations. In terms of public relations they are a key tool to getting your organisation's key messages to your campaigns desired audience. Public relations are information providers and journalists are information seekers, there roles are constantly interweaving. Often the outcomes of working with the media are tangible and visible, from newspaper articles to online, radio and television.

 

It’s important to remember that if public relations staff want to work with the media they must have a good understanding of how they operate including timeframes and deadlines, what is news-worth or valuable to the public, and ethical and legal considerations. Its also important to understand that, like Public Relations, journalism is an evolving industry thanks to web 2.0 and the way in which journalists operate is changing.

It’s important for public relations practitioners to realise the news opportunities they have. Organisations can gain valuable media exposure through monitoring and jumping on trends and ensuring that there is planning and preparation to create spontaneous news “crisis communication” e.g. natural disaster occurs, terrorist attack, a election is called or company scandal. Journalist have busy schedules so it is important to ensure that the information you provide doesn’t waste their time. Being accurate, brief and clear will increase the chances of your media release getting picked up.

 

- Caitlyn :) 

 

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All photographs in this blog post are property of Tourism Western Australia.

 

Johnston, J. (2007). Media relations: Issues and strategies. Sydney: Allen and Unwin.

Caitlyn Rintoul
Curtin University - Bentley Campus (Perth, Western Australia)
16172526