Chapter 14
Chapter
Fourteen is titled “Preparing Materials for Mass Media.” This chapter focuses
on exactly what the title reads: preparing press release materials for the
media. Specifically, this chapter focuses on materials as “news releases.” The
chapter defines news releases as useful for many reasons, including the fact
that in modern times most reporters and editors spend time processing
information rather than gathering it. Also, barely any PR or communications
business rarely has enough staff to cover a single event in its entirety. The
chapter firstly describes some old-style forms of press communication that are
still used today.
Among some
of the “old style” press communications are: basic news releases, press
releases, media kits, and pitch letters. The chapter then describes a basic
“news release.” News Releases must be:
accurate, informative, and written in a journalistic style – as in it must be
concise. News Releases include many different forms – such as press release.
This is a statement issued to specific newspapers in order to give information
to said enterprise. Press releases can sometimes include photos. The chapter
also describes a “media kit.” This kit usually contains a traditional story, a
fact sheet, a feature story, and possibly photos. Pitch letters are essentially
how a pitch is delivered to a client. These depend on creativity and research.
Most, if
not all of these “old style” press communications are still used today but are
heavily impacted by the presence of social media. Further, the audience
changing from local or regional to global and “mass media,” has affected the
way we communicate in a press format.
Though “Radio and Television” seem
to be outdated forms of communication, these media outlets still crawl along
even with the undying presence of the internet and social media. Hence why there is a whole chapter dedicated
to Radio and Television.
Both forms of television and radio
can have different elements that affect their message. For example: product
placement and special guests. Product placement is used in television, film,
and radio in order to boost awareness for a companies product or item. Special
guests can be used to persuade audience’s ethos, and potentially increase the
effectiveness of their message.
This chapter also covers different
forms that radio and television can be used to provide press releases. For
radio, these include RMTs, PSAs, and ANRs. RMT’s stand for Radio Media Tours,
and it involves a radio spokesperson conducting interviews with other radio
productions countrywide. PSA’s stand for public service announcements; quite
simply they are unpaid service announcement that serve government programs.
ANRs are audio news releases. These are different than public service
announcements because they are written and targeted to specific audiences.
Television press releases include: SMTs,
PSAs, and VNRs. SMTs are similar to RMTs, in that a spokesperson can conduct
one on one interviews broadcast to the public. PSAs differ here in that public
service announcements in television include images, which may affect the
overall message of the announcement. VNRs stand for video news releases. This
process happens by production companies receiving “B-roll” footage so that they
can produce a story from the footage.
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