The New Kid

Being a journalism major, I’ve heard for years how closely journalism and public relations are related. This was one of the reasons why I decided to apply to be in PRowl this semester. It was something different. I wanted to see how close it really was to journalism. I wanted to see if some of the things I’d heard were true.

One major difference that I’ve noticed between public relations and journalism is the audience. Journalists are generally trained to appeal to a mass audience. In public relations, everything revolves around the client that you’re working with. One criticism of PR that I’ve found talking to some aspiring journalists is that they’re always trying to “spin a story.”  This semester, I’ve learned that is a misconception. As a public relations professional, it’s not about “spinning a story.” Rather, it’s about acting in the best interest of your client at all times. If your client is happy, then you’ve done a great job.

Another difference that I’ve noticed is that PR can be so specific at times. Your ideas, pitches, written work and presentations all depend on what the client wants. What the client wants can also change at any time. In that regard, it’s always great to be prepared with a variety of ideas. You never know when you have to pitch something new. That was tough for me to grasp at first.   But, after a few weeks, I caught on.

Even with the differences, the two go hand in hand. Both require great communication skills and some creativity. The ability to think on your feet is also a great asset.  At the end of the day, whether you are a journalist or PR person, we’re communicators. The ability to communicate a message clearly and effectively is a talent within itself. As a result, everyone needs us. Our methods of choice are just different.  The skills we’ve learned ultimately help us to create powerful messages. I’m so thankful to be a part of PRowl and can’t wait to see what next semester holds. 

This guest blog post was written by PRowl Staff Member Jasmine Barnes.

Media Relations Myths

After reading this article on PR Daily, I will never look at media relations the same way.  The author points out three major misconceptions that people have about pitching to the media:

1. It's all about who you know.
I've always been told that connections will make or break your career, especially in public relations.  The author of this article combats this theory by saying it is not, in fact, about who you know; it's about having a good story.  Maintaining a relationship with a reporter is always a good idea, but if your story isn't up to par, no relationship is going to help you.

2. Every pitch has to be perfect.
It has been drilled into our brains that we need to double and triple check our emails.  We are told that if there is one typo our credibility goes out the window and our pitches are disregarded.  This article disagrees, and I see the authors point.  Having internships in the professional world has shown me that there really are times where people forego grammar laws and just shoot out an email that gets their point across.  While it's always good to maintain a professional writing style, sometimes a spelling error really isn't going to ruin your pitch.

3. Print is king.
The article points out that clients generally like to see their names in hold-able, foldable print.  This is probably true because for some reason a tactile version of a story can seem more glorified than something you read off a computer screen.  This attitude is definitely changing, however, especially with the evolution of online media and the ability to have an online subscription to many newspapers.  I wouldn't say that press in a print newspaper is any more or less exciting than it is online.

Pitching has always been something that made me nervous, and I'm sure many of my peers will agree.  It's important to take seriously and be professional, but these myths are important to crack.  While I don't know if I will ever be able to send a pitch without triple-checking my grammar and spelling, it's nice to know that pitching isn't as pressure-packed as people make it out to be.