All Posts Tagged With: "social media"

Back in July, I asked the question “Are Newspapers Becoming Irrelevant in Public Relations Campaigns?” My theory was that with newspapers cutting editorial staff and fewer people subscribing, perhaps expending much effort trying to cultivate reporters and editors might be a waste of time.

Well, I’ve changed my mind. It’s not that newspapers have made some remarkable comeback; on the contrary, some of the bigger chains are on the verge of financial meltdown because they have or soon will default on debt payments. More cuts could be forthcoming.

Rather than a challenge, I’ve come to view the slow demise of newspapers as an opportunity. With editorial staffs cut to the bone, editors and reporters are more desperate than ever for good story ideas. I’ve always felt that one of the most important roles a PR person can fill is to make life easier for journalists. The more you can do to provide background and access to sources, the better chance you will have of seeing your story in print.

A well-written press release that follows AP style and isn’t too company oriented is still a powerful tool. The major dailies will continue to develop their own stories, and the small community weeklies will print every word, assuming you follow basic guidelines. But I’ve noticed that some regional dailies — with declining but still significant readership — have become much more receptive to running press releases with minor adjustments. Photos, too, are more acceptable than they once were.

Of course, this is not to say newspapers still carry the influence they did, say, 15 or 20 years ago. You still need to include the Internet, with its myriad of social media outlets, in your PR mix.

Popularity: 26% [?]

I’ve been newspaper junkie since discovering the sports pages of the old Philadelphia Bulletin in 1964. From the first day I walked into a newsroom more than 30 years ago, I’ve been captivated by the rhythms of putting out the equivalent of a novel a day. The gritty smell of a newspaper fresh off the press still gives me a rush.

So it pains me to see what is happening to the newspaper industry. Three papers I’ve worked for have gone through painful cuts in the last few months with dozens of solid, hard-working journalists losing their jobs. It’s no different anywhere in the country. The villains are precipitous drop in advertising revenue and an unrelenting corporate thirst for unrealistic profit margins. With less quality content, fewer readers subscribe. That means fewer advertisers. Until the bean counters find a way to make a buck off the Internet, the vicious circle will be repeated.

As difficult it is for me to watch as a former journalist, what does the slow demise of the newspaper industry mean to me as a public relations professional? Are newspapers still a relevant part of PR efforts? Should I invest the time and energy it takes to forge relationships with editors and reporters who could be laid off any day? Do enough people read newspapers to make them a worthwhile target?

For now, the answer is a lukewarm yes. But the day is coming – sooner than anyone ever predicted – when printed newspapers will be just an afterthought in most public relations programs. In some cases, that day has already arrived. If your target audience is under 30, forget about newspapers.

So what will take newspapers’ place?

A recent study by the Public Relations Society of America says social media and blogs are becoming a medium for companies to communicate externally - that is, through its public relations. According to the study, “two-thirds of public relations practitioners believe blogs and social media have enhanced what happens in public relations and that social media and traditional mainstream media complement each other.” Furthermore, “61 percent believe the emergence of blogs and social media have changed the way their organizations (or client organizations) communicate.”

While nothing can replace the thrill of a front page story — and I’ll date myself here — “above the fold,” the fact is social media and blogs are the future of public relations.

Popularity: 55% [?]