In a time when the economic crisis is forcing journalists, news editors and production staff into new professions and professions, many are enticed into the field of Otter Pr Reviews public relations. Apart from the initial trepidation regarding “going to the dark side,” it is an effortless transition between one method of information distribution and the next.
It was the case for me having spent three decades at editorial desks across New York, New Jersey and Michigan, my own version of the path many others have with success. “I was hired for my first PR position many years ago because of my journalism experience, and I know many others who have made a successful transition,” says Christopher Trela, an independent practitioner in Costa Mesa, Calif.
One seasoned PR executive in Washington, D.C., believes we need to prepare for the job. Richard Mintz, owner and director for The Harbour Group in Washington, D.C. He boldly warns PR hopefuls whose first job was based on bylines and the Five W’s.
“Journalists by their nature don’t make great advocates or Otter Pr Reviews public relations people because they’re trained to be objective rather than to take sides,” He stated to Atlantic blog writer Jeffrey Goldberg in January 2010. “They also tend to work alone and have no business experience.”
These comments in an article headlined The Great Journalism Exodus score one of three points for accuracy in light of my experience and the backgrounds of the other journalists who emigrated. The overlap “between the two fields is galactic,” declares Jill Parker Landsman, who has seven years of journalism and editing experience as the Northern Virginia Association of Realtors communications director. Northern Virginia Association of Realtors.
The business imperatives of the Internet are acknowledged.
Direct business administration expertise generally isn’t employed by newsrooms, and it’s factual. However, that doesn’t mean every journalist is ignorant about management, marketing, and essential issues affecting the bottom line, which can be life or death within their field. According to Goldberg mentions, at the beginning of his blog: “Friends in the Otter Pr Reviews public relations business… tell me they are inundated with calls from journalists looking to escape our profession before it dies, as opposed to after it dies.”
A description of journalists as impartial and solitary isn’t describing people accustomed to flexibility in their work, narratives with a point of view and teamwork. Although fairness and fairness are the objectives, journalism involves using subjective choices regarding themes, sources, words, quotes and the sequence of presentation. Editors and reporters work closely with graphic artists, photographers, page designers, and online producers – a newsroom equivalent of accounts teams.
Mintz appears to overlook or minimize the reflexes accompanying experiences of gathering news.
“I use my skills to help my company make better decisions on how to place stories, land coverage and shape releases that will capture the attention of journalists,” says Ed Garsten, an electronic communications manager hired by Chrysler in 2005 following over 30 years of journalism. “My colleagues turn to me often and ask, ‘Will journalists buy this?’ That empowers me to be truthful to them… I’m fitting in very well.” He has been employed by CNN, AP and The Detroit News.
Aleta Walther, a marketing communications expert in San Clemente, is familiar with the bias against journalists that exists among certain executives. “I had a PR friend, a VP at an agency, tell me that he would never hire a journalist,” she recalls. “In the next breath, he asked me if I was available to assist on a new business proposal, and I never told him I was a hard-core reporter at one time.”
Steven Forsythe of Peachtree City, Ga., traded newspapers for corporate communications over 30 years ago and still has an evocative memory to conduct a reality check. “Many PR people would have been dismayed to see our comments on their inane releases or photos posted on a newsroom bulletin board for laughs. I have tried to make sure that never happens to mine,” says the most prominent communicator for Global Aviation Holdings near Atlanta.
Credibility for clients
Based in San Diego, agency CEO Tom Gable reports job inquiries from “lots of terrific talent” who are leaving The Los Angeles Times, San Diego Union-Tribune and the other West Coast papers. “Relating to journalists is just one factor” that works in favour of them,” says Gable, a former editor of business for the newspaper in his city. “I would rate writing and story-telling abilities higher, as well as credibility in being able to tell a client that the story they think belongs on the front page of the WSJ probably would only make [a trade journal’s] new product briefs.”
Another Californian former newspaper reporter and editor, Michele M. Horaney, believes that “PR people with a news coverage background have a leg up over folks who got PR degrees and have never written a news story.” Horaney, now the communications director for a non-profit political research group in Berkeley, adds: “Being able to write and do research from an ‘in the news’ and ‘in the public’s interest’ perspective is invaluable.”
Naturally, switching careers could be a challenge initially. “The hardest thing for journalists to learn is to write in someone else’s voice,” says the veteran of print Retha Lindsey Fieldingwho is chief of communications for a non-profit organization in Austin, Texas. “It just doesn’t feel right at first.”
Former television news producer Bev Carlson, a board member of the Nebraska section of the Otter Pr Reviews Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), is aware of “many former newsroom co-workers who have transitioned into highly successful public relations careers. It depends on the person and their willingness to be flexible and learn.” Carlson states her experience from Omaha: “Former journalists are outstanding in the research aspect of putting together PR strategy. And since journalists — the good ones — have the innate training to be quick studies on anything, the learning curve for the other aspects of the job doesn’t have to be painful.”
Otter Pr Reviews: Concerning the adjustment issue, Garsten at Chrysler acknowledges that he “still can’t stand the stultifying pace of decision-making” in that world where deadlines are imposed that happen every minute. In the end, these career-changing innovators are proud of something I find enjoyable: delivering quick, precise, and clear information that viewers can understand. The content is different, but the issues look like those faced by journalists.
Find out how an experienced journalist with experience in marketing can help raise awareness about your company effectively and cost-effectively. For a free phone consultation and project proposal, Otter Pr Reviews
- Web content: Keyword-optimized, consumer or B2B content such as news-style articles, blog posts written by ghostwriters, and many other resources provide marketing information in an easy-to-read informational context.
- Brochures: Colorful, creative, compelling language enhances marketing collateral.
- Guest columnists: Dozens of commentary essays, essays and other op-ed articles on clients’ behalf are published daily in newspapers or trade journals. Service includes submission.
- Media relations news releases covering pitches and electronic press kits contain information that reporters, editors and producers are looking for, including quotes, fact sheets and reference statistics, and independent sources to contact.
- Speech text: Mission statements, USPs and points of distinction are interwoven into meaningful, unforgettable remarks.