PR Writings

7/29/2019 PR Writings

1/31

PR Writings: Press releases

and conferences

Nora Nailul Amal


2/31

PR Writers

You may be writing for a company Web site,

a blog, a social Web site, facebook, a live

chat, or the PR war room of a large company

facing a public relations crisis. In every case,clear, persuasive written communication, the

stock in trade of the public relations writer, is

the core skill that can be leveraged by eachnew technology and technique.


3/31

Whether you are writing for newspapers, broadcast outlets, books, or public

relations purposes, the basics of good expository writing remain the same and

never go out of date:

Clarity

Accuracy

Vividness

Aptness of details, examples, and quotations

Correct grammar

A clear, varied style


4/31

Any good writing is probably 20 percent writing and80 percent rewriting. In public relations, expect 90percent rewriting because a number of people willmake suggestions and changes during the approval

process. You have to be willing to work toward clarity. Even

with the pressure of instant deadlines, you mustinsist on making and then taking the time to create

readable prose that achieves your communicationsgoals. Then proofread, proofread, proofread! Onceyour writing is sent digitally into cyberspace, an erroris forever.


5/31

When you become adept at writing newsworthy

press releases, informative biographies, fact sheets,

media kits, and stories that are specific to a

newsletter's target audience, you will find plenty ofnew challenges ahead: speeches, multimedia

presentations, broadcast scripts, event

presentations and time lines, as well as Internet

communications, editorials, opinion pieces, crisis

communications, and official statements.


6/31

Whatever digital distribution channel you may

be usingyour main responsibilities as a

public relations writer:

Clearly understand your product, client,company, or message.

Know your target audiences.

Write clear, engaging prose that effectivelycommunicates your message to your

audience.


7/31

News releases, press conferences, officialproceedings, and other nonspontaneous eventscontinue to make major contributions to newscoverage in newspapers large and small, with the

percentage of nonspontaneous material in smallernewspapers being even higher than in larger ones(Song, 2002). In other words, many journalists arereceptive when a story comes to them from

businessespecially if it is well written andparticularly if the reporter or editor has a priorrelationship of trust with the public relationspractitioner (Curtain, 1997).


8/31

The media are inundated by dozens of newsreleases every day. If your release is to be read andconsidered for coverage, it must offer a newsworthystory, stated clearly and simply, long on information

and short on adjectives. A news release typically introduces a new product,

service, or idea; reports new findings from a survey;alerts the media to an upcoming event; announces astaff change; or simply presents new information.

Sometimes a release is the basis of an entire story.More often, an idea in it suggests a related story oraffects a story an editor or reporter already has inprogress.


9/31

Before you write, ask yourself:

Is this story truly newsworthy, and will it interest the intendedaudience? Much has been written on the subject of what is newsand what should be covered. Some say news is anything peopledidn't know about yesterday or anything that affects their lives.The late newspaper columnist Walter Winchell used to say that

news is anything that protrudes from the ordinary. The debate about judging news value is sure to continue as long

as news is reported, but you can begin to measure the newsvalue of your story by asking if it offers any significant informationthat was not available before and whether anybody will care

about this information.


10/31

Does this story answer all the questions it is

likely to raise?

Will this story, if covered, advance my client's

objectives?

Are all the facts and figures in the story

accurate? Has every name, date, and piece

of information been double-checked with areliable source?


11/31

The Appointment Release

State the appointee's name and title, and attributethe announcement to an official from the company.Also state the name of the person to whom theappointee will report and when the appointment

becomes effective. (If this last fact is not included,it is implied that the appointment is effectiveimmediately.)

State the name of the person being replaced

(optional; it may be a touchy subject), or, if theposition is new, say that the subject of the release''has been appointed to the newly created positionof...''


12/31

State the scope of the appointee's responsibilities

in relation to the company or client, and describe

the nature of the business. Sometimes a quotation

from the appointee's boss is used in this second

paragraph; rarely, however, is the quotation used

by the press unless it contains newsworthy

information about the company's new initiatives

and not just boilerplate praise about what a

wonderful person the appointee is.


13/31

State the appointee's professional and educational history,covering the most recent position and accomplishments firstand working backward in time. This conforms to the inverted

pyramid news style of summarizing the most importantinformation at the top and supporting the lead with, first, themost relevant or important details and, then, details of lesserimportance.

The inverted pyramid allows the story to be cut to any length; if

only the first paragraph is used because of space limitations,the whole story is still conveyed. You may also offer a fewpersonal facts, such as his or her place of residence, place oforigin, and, sometimes, marital status. Although such detailsare rarely covered in a news article, they are helpful forindividualizing the appointee and establishing common ground

between the appointee and someone who later accesses therelease from your company Web site.


14/31

Include your client's approved company

description, also known as boilerplate

including trademark, registered, and

copyright designations, as well as thecompany's Web site address.

End with the name, telephone number, and

e-mail address of the designated mediaspokesperson.


15/31

The Product Release

Lifestyle, Trend, and Survey Releases

Quotations


16/31

Barack Obama, Russell Simmons, B. B. King, Harry Belafonte andIsaac Hayes Lend Their Voice to AOL Black Voices Celebration ofBlack History Month

January 30, 2006

AOL Black Voices, the premier site for African-American culture andcommunity, celebrates Black History Month with an interactive look atthe lives, stories and contributions of significant African Americans inhistory (http://0-blackvoices.aol.com.library.newcastle.edu.au/black_news/black_history_month). Through a partnership with The HistoryMakers, the nation'slargest African American video oral history archive headquartered in

Chicago, IL, users can watch video interviews from significant figuresincluding Senator Barack Obama, Russell Simmons, B.B. King, HarryBelafonte and Isaac Hayes, among others.

''As one of the most comprehensive news organizations bringing Blackculture and information to millions of people each month, AOL BlackVoices is thrilled to focus a six week campaign looking at thecontributions of Black Americans,'' said Nick Charles, Editor in Chief,

AOL Black Voices. ''Through video, audio and exclusive articles, we arebringing our community closer together to debate and rejoice in the richhistory of black people.'' [AOL 2006]
http://0-blackvoices.aol.com.library.newcastle.edu.au/black_news/black_history_monthhttp://0-blackvoices.aol.com.library.newcastle.edu.au/black_news/black_history_monthhttp://0-blackvoices.aol.com.library.newcastle.edu.au/black_news/black_history_monthhttp://0-blackvoices.aol.com.library.newcastle.edu.au/black_news/black_history_monthhttp://0-blackvoices.aol.com.library.newcastle.edu.au/black_news/black_history_monthhttp://0-blackvoices.aol.com.library.newcastle.edu.au/black_news/black_history_monthhttp://0-blackvoices.aol.com.library.newcastle.edu.au/black_news/black_history_month


17/31

Photos, Samples, and Review Copies

Whenever appropriate, you should state that a photo or colorslide, a sample, or a review copy of the subject of the release isavailable on request or downloadable from a specified Webaddress (if it is not already enclosed with the release).

Music critics complain that publicists will call and ask if they want

to interview band members. If a music critic has never heard theband, has no idea what the group sounds like, and has notreceived a compact disc, been directed to a sample on a Website, or been invited to hear the band perform, there is no chancethe reporter will know if he has an interest in writing about it, let

alone whether he wants to do an interview.


18/31

Make it as easy as possible for the journalist to

experience firsthand the subject of your press

release. If the release is about a speech, attach acomplete text of that speech. If the release is about

a new fabric, attach a swatch.

When a sample cannot be enclosed, invite the

reporter to a place where the subject of the newsrelease can be viewed or encountered.

Make full use of the capabilities of the Internet to

provide compelling photographs, video, and audio to

help tell your story and for the media to use asbackground information or as content for their

stories.


19/31

News releases style and form

All news releases must have four key elements: Date and embargo. Include a date indicating when

the release is issued and another date indicatingwhen it should be made public. Any restriction on

when the information may be used is called anembargo. An embargo is usually used when issuinginformation that can be released to the public onlyafter a specified date and time. Embargoes can betricky and should be used cautiously. If one member

of the press ignores the embargo and breaks thestory early, others will probably follow. If yourrelease has no time restrictions for going public,mark it ''For Immediate Release.''


20/31

Contact. Include the name, telephone number,and e-mail address of the person to whom

inquiries should be directed. For breaking stories

of great urgency, you may also want to include a

cell phone or home phone number if media may

need information during nonoffice hours.

Headline. The headline at the top of the releasesummarizes the story and catches the reader's

attention. When the story is complicated, use a

subhead as well. Headline information is drawn

from the body of the release, because the release

must hold up as a complete thought without the

headline.


21/31

News Conference

Perhaps the most common public relations

event is the news conference. To hold a

news conference essentially means to gather

the media at a designated place and time sothat they can hear a significant and

newsworthy announcement and ask

questions. This is one of the most

straightforward methods of generating

publicity.


22/31

The most important part of a news

conference is the announcement being

made. Regardless of how much hoopla

accompanies a news conference, if theannouncement is not newsworthy, the

coverage will be minimal at best. Even worse,

the media will be angry that you wasted their

time and left them with an empty news hole

that they had budgeted for your big story.


23/31

Covering a news conference consumes about fourhours of time for the reporter, plus camera andsound crew for broadcast (travel, setup, one-hour

event, additional interviews and B-roll, breakdown,and travel).

What the media want in exchange for thiscommitment of time and staffbesides strong

coffee, fresh pastries and bagels, and orangejuiceis something beyond the story they would getby saying, ''Just send us the press release.'' This''something else'' is the challenge for publicrelations. You'll be asked, ''What else do you have

for me?'' or, more likely, you'll be told, ''That's oldnews. We've done that story already. What else yagot?''


24/31

At the minimum, press events should be designed togenerate interesting photographs for the print mediaand great video footage and a sound-bite that thebroadcast competition doesn't have. In addition tothe speeches, copies of which you will thoughtfullyprovide in the media kit that the press will receivewhether or not they attend, the journalists expect''something else.'' A Q&A itself can be the''something else'' (news), when a free give-and-takeallows reporters to ask hard-hitting questionsforexample, when a normally publicity-shy CEObanters with the press and gives answers thatseemingly are off-the-cuff.


25/31

Of course, before the event, you anticipate

the most obvious or troublesome questions

and provide the speaker with possible

answers. You probably also help thespokesperson rehearse answering reporters'

questions in a relaxed style that seems

impromptu. If your speaker is not willing to

take reporters' questions, don't call your

event a press conference.


26/31

The checklist

Invitation listpress, celebrities, politicians, and others Time and date: possible conflicts

On-site arrangements Venue rental

Parking location and validation

Security

Menu

Green Room location (a backstage area for speakers and guests) andrefreshments

Stage: Company logo, dais, podium, microphones, teleprompter, ice water

Press needs: Sight lines, sound plug-ins, electrical, Internet

Audiovisual, computer, Internet hookup, duplicate program media, and other

electronic equipment Signage

Staff communication devices

Sign-in book

Name badges


27/31

Invitations Media alert

Photo opportunity alert

Book your own photographer and videographer

Hire a media monitoring service

Callbacks to invited press members to firm up attendance

Associated Press Daybook

Media kit Speeches Main announcement release

Technology release Executive bios

Company backgrounder/fact sheet

Photos/captions (see Chapter Two)

Event time line, emcee self-introduction, speaker introductions and talking points

Possible questions from the media and drafted answers

Staffing assignments

Rehearsal The PR Newswire and the Business Wire

Follow-up

Postmortem
http://0-library.books24x7.com.library.newcastle.edu.au/viewer.asp?bkid=18034&destid=29http://0-library.books24x7.com.library.newcastle.edu.au/viewer.asp?bkid=18034&destid=29


28/31

More on Media Relations

Media courtesy

Media visit

Media gathering


29/31

More on PR Writings

Writing biography

Financial writing

Write the crisis crisis releases

Program writings selling your concepts

Responding to critical articles

Web sites, corporate blogs

Corporate brochures, congratulatory letters

Etc.


30/31

Next assignment

Pelajari materi PR writing, release dan conferences. Bekali diri anda dengan informasi mengenai:

LBPP Lia Surakarta

RSUD Dr. Moewardi Surakarta

TA TV Surakarta PT Tyfountex Indonesia

Figure out how you can build positive relationship aseffective as possible with the media.

Anda bisa memulai dengan memunculkan isu2 yangpotensial untuk mendapatkan mediacoverage/publisitas sehingga meningkatkan citraperusahaan.


31/31

Kelompok akan saya bagi dalam focus group

discussion.

Materi UK akan berkisar PR Writing, release

dan conference.

Sebagai pengayaan, isu publisitas dan media

relations berkaitan dengan perusahaan

terpilih di atas akan didiskusikan. Prepare the knowledge in your brain, see you

on the exam!

PR Writings

Documents

Transcript of PR Writings