Three ways journalists annoy PR professionals
In this response to a Fairfax Media article about three things that annoy journalists David Satterthwaite bemoans the annoying behaviours of journalists in their interactions with PR professionals.
Your computer *pings*. It’s an email from a journalist you contacted days before and you open it eagerly, hoping they’ve read the information you sent and want to write an awesome story about it.
Well, kind of. It was a press release regarding new developments in biomedical science but their response is “OK so is this anything to do with iPads? We’re doing a tech feature on Saturday and I want something to do with iPads and kids.”
Well, I could go back to the world-leading scientist and ask if his five years of research into computational fluid dynamics to aid delivery of life saving medications is somehow related to iPads, and if he could suggest a child- friendly angle, but you know what – I probably won’t.
I’m not really sure what your point is here. Yes, journos annoy us sometimes. So what. We’re paid to make life easier for them, not the other way around.
And yes, I’m a former journo, too.
You go chasing tangents for journos? And don’t ask for their deadlines?
Asking to be disappointed, IMHO. Just asking for it.
Good points, but a tad laboured. I’ve worked on both sides of the divide, and as a comms specialist at a large corporation I always found journalists would help me get my message across if I was able to give them the right angle to hang it on. Satterthwaite could try sharpening up his messages and stop trying to be so helpful when he can’t be!
As a trade publisher, my journos and I spend a lot of time dealing with PRs from large “name” PR firms whose clients deserve so much more than they get, if they only realised. Far too many are disengaged, unhelpful and know next to nothing about the client who’s paying them. And their in-house PR managers are often even worse.
and, 4. Taking the glitter off the turds.
Dear beloved readers,
I would like to reiterate that the article is intentionally hyperbolic, making a gentle comment about the tone of the original.
To be honest, I actually have no trouble at all in my current role when dealing with journalists (except for when they forget to add ‘Professor’). Given the nature of my role, I deal with science-focused journos and they are almost always more passionate and skilled than their colleagues in more generalist fields across the board.
If you’d like a serious article about the *actual* issues that hold back the journalistic and PR fields this isn’t it – but I can write one if you want, and my rates are awfully reasonable 😉
It’s not just the fact that this article made me laugh to the point of tears that has me so impressed, but these points are fantastic. What a great response, written even better than the journalist’s original story.
I think there is a valid point in there about the arrogant attitude which is, while not universal, common in journalism.
I’ve no problem with arrogance. It is okay to act like you are the smartest person in the room…provided you are the smartest person in the room. Which is almost never the case for a journalist. The arrogance is just so unjustified.
The attitude they are more ethical……umm, you work for Rupert Murdoch.
The attitude their job is more prestigious than their interview subjects….umm, you are a journalist…your subject is a researcher/police officer/nurse/judge/author who you know….has actually done something to benefit people. Want to think about that when you start browbeating them?
@Hugo I agree and the point about it being common as opposed to universal tends to be a function of workplace culture in my experience. I’ve noticed those publications which tend to be a little more, err, ‘nebulous’ in ethical standards tend to be the ones where this attitude is more prevalent. At a guess, I’d imagine this tends to be a function both of those publications attracting folks with more baseline arrogance issues, and having staff members who are unhappy in their jobs and turn that unhappiness into projections like arrogance.
Watching the journo’s all subtweeting about this article on twitter is seriously cracking me up. I’m not a journo, though work online & with many media people so found this rather funny. The ‘more important’ attitude that Journo’s have re Comms is all pervasive, until of course if as a political journo, they then score a Comms role with an ‘important’ politician, then of course Comms is not so bad after all LOL
Journo’s seem to look down on PR people, bloggers, any business/organisation that disseminates their own information, yet, I wonder if Authors see them in the same light? Must really peeve them to see the likes of ex-journo Gavin King write a bio of a pollie, get a shipload of PR just coz he used to work in the same industry & of course the pollie is well known, and the bloke is actually a crap writer in my opinion with a loose interpretation of facts.
Though King is only one of many Journo’s who have moonlighted down that same road, getting PR that professional Authors could only dream of – or wish their publishers could get for them – yet I don’t see them whining about Journo’s?
Either way, seriously interesting as a punter standing on the sidelines watching the sniping & dissecting of one very good – and funny – piece 😉
About time someone said it. Great read.
After a number of comments from family and friends, I think I should point out that the photo accompanying the article was taken in the same spirit that the words were written.