Solution Manual for Canadian PR for the Real World

Maryse Cardin, Kylie McMullan

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Solution Manual for Canadian PR for the Real World Maryse Cardin, Kylie McMullan

Chapter 6
Media Relations

CHAPTER SYNOPSIS

Media relations can be a powerful tool in assisting an organization meet its public relations and
business goals. Chapter 6 is a practical step-by-step look at how to conduct media relations. It
also provides an overview of the role of the journalist and the media landscape in Canada.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES FOR THIS CHAPTER

1. Analyze the strengths of media relations and the inherent risks involved compared to
other public relations tactics and forms of marketing.
2. Differentiate between the role journalists play in society and the role they play as a
conduit to target audiences.
3. Appraise the relationship between practitioners and journalists.
4. Review and select media best able to reach target audiences.
5. Develop a step-by-step media relations action plan.

CHAPTER OUTLINE

1. Media Relations Defined– Page 163

Media relations is about creating relationships with the media and journalists and is a key
function in public relations. In this section media relations is explained and the benefits
and challenges of media relations are reviewed. Lastly, proactive and reactive media
relations are defined.

2. Journalists: Their Role and What They Do – Page 168

In this section, the role of journalists in our society and how they function is examined.
This information is of relevance to PR practitioners because the more they know about
journalists, the better equipped they are to form positive relationships with them and
generate coverage. This section also discusses journalists’ need for PR practitioners.

3. Providing Journalists with What They Need and Building Relationships with Them
– Page 171
Many journalists enjoy working with PR people. They are aware that PR practitioners
provide them with valuable information and access to spokespeople and resources.
However, sometimes the objectives of the PR practitioner and the journalist are in
conflict. This section provides an overview on how to provide journalists with what they
need and how to build long term, mutually beneficial relationships with them. The news
values are also listed and described in this section.

4. The Media Landscape – Page 176

It is essential for PR practitioners to understand the media landscape, or the various types
of media that reach an organization’s audience. This section reviews the media landscape
in Canada, including print, broadcast, and digital, and also provides an overview of ethnic
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 media and news agencies.

5. Conducting Media Relations – Page 180

This section breaks down media relations into six steps in order to provide a practical
overview of how it is conducted. It also describes media events and explains how they
can generate coverage.

CHAPTER SOLUTIONS

Media Relations Defined: Thinking Like a PR Practitioner (page 167)

1. Discuss two recent news stories that you believe are examples of reactive media
relations. Explain why you believe that they are reactive. How could the organization
could have been more proactive?

Answer: Students are to explore the difference between proactive and reactive media
relations. A reactive media story is one where the journalist approached the organization
without having been pitched. This is most often the case when the organization is featured in
a negative news story. Reactive media relations stories are also likely when the profile of the
organization, or person, is high.

2. Identify two examples of proactive media relations in your community.

Answer: A good way to identify proactive media relations is by a campaign. For instance, a
festival will conduct proactive media relations to get journalists to attend and to talk about
the festival beforehand. Other media coverage that results from proactive campaigns tends
to be new product launches, organization milestones like an anniversary, and new employee
hires.

3. Compare the benefits of media relations with the challenges. What are some ways to
overcome the challenges?

Answer: Here students need to look at the benefits of media relations, such as getting the
word out to the public and receiving the media’s endorsement, and potential challenges,
such as being unable to control how the story will ultimately appear and the difficulty of
breaking through the clutter and having your story noticed, especially if it is not very
newsworthy. In most cases, the benefits outweigh the challenges because positive media
coverage can be extremely powerful and go a long way toward helping an organization meet
its objectives.

Journalists: Their Role and What They Do: Thinking Like a PR Practitioner (page 171)

1. Explain the role that journalists play in our society.

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 Answer: Here students need to start looking at how journalists contribute to society and
democracy. Some PR practitioners start to think of journalists solely as the conduit to their
target audiences and forget that they are there to serve the greater good. They keep the
public informed so that our country can flourish. They help us make sense of events. They
set the agenda about the topics that will be discussed and thought about in our country.

2. Summarize why journalists need sources. What can you do to become a trusted
source?

Answer: Journalists hardly ever witness something first-hand. They depend on sources to
write their stories. They must be able to trust that these sources provide them with
information that is true and accurate. PR people are some of the leading sources.

Providing Journalists with What They Need and Building Relationships: Thinking Like a
PR Practitioner (page 176)

1. Do a search online for a media release distribution service such as Canada Newswire
(www.newswire.ca). You will find a section that includes media releases from different
organizations. Identify one that contains three news values or more and another one
that is not newsworthy. Discuss the news values in each media release and the
differences between them.

Answer: This exercise provides students with an opportunity to read several current news
releases and determine how newsworthy they are. They may find that some news releases do
not contain any news values at all. This can raise the question of whether the media release
will have any success in generating media interest and coverage. Students will also have a
chance to see examples of strategic media relations with media releases that are extremely
newsworthy. You can take this exercise a step further and ask students to identify a
newsworthy media release from a few days ago and then conduct a search online
(news.google.ca) for any media coverage that generated from it.

2. Explain two actions you can take to build relationships with journalists in your
community.

Answer: Students should outline concrete steps they can take to build relationships with
journalists where they live. It may be possible to meet journalists in person by identifying
different local events, conferences, or speaking engagements where journalists will be in
attendance. It is also possible to send journalists an introductory email letting them know
that you are the publicist for an organization.

3. Discuss three things that journalists and PR practitioners have in common. What is
meant when we say PR practitioners are not asking for favours when they pitch stories
to journalists?

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 Answer: The point here is to get students thinking about the fact that a mutually beneficial
relationship with journalists is possible and that practitioners contribute significantly to the
story-generation process. Journalists and PR practitioners share these some of these traits:

• They use similar skills such as writing and researching.

• They understand how to tailor stories to their audiences.
• They incorporate news values into their stories.
• They work under tight deadlines.
• They provide information to different publics.
• They practise the ethics of truth and accuracy in their work.

In addition, PR practitioners provide a valuable service to journalists in helping them create

news stories and we provide them with access to spokespeople within our organizations.

4. Cite two examples of circumstances where journalists and PR practitioners have had a
conflict of interest.

Answer: The overall goal of journalists is to serve the public’s right to know while that of
public relations practitioners is to serve the needs of their organizations. PR practitioners do
everything in their power to ensure that an organization is seen in a positive way. That is not
a concern of journalists. In their quest for objectivity, journalists tell both sides of a story
and that may put some organizations in a bad light. This question permits students to
explore scenarios where in the course of their work in PR they may be at odds with
journalists.

5. Visit the media section of the website of the Canadian Museum of Civilization
(www.civilization.ca/cmc/media). Read several media releases. What stories is the
museum utilizing to generate media coverage? Generate two story angles that the
museum could use in media releases. Identify a second organization that also posts
media information on its website and answer the same questions.

Answer: Here students can see real-life media angles that the museum is using to generate
media coverage. This is also an opportunity to examine an excellent example of a website
media section that includes high-quality digital photos, publications, and media releases.

The students are to generate media angles for the museum based on news values to ensure
they would be of interest to the media. For example, a new exhibition can include the news
values of locality (for local media and for travel media), immediacy (current exhibition, only
on for a short time), novelty (if it is something unique and new), human interest (in the
individual stories featured in the exhibition), and even conflict (depending on the topic of
the exhibition).

The Media Landscape: Thinking Like a PR Practitioner (page 180)

1. Conduct research to identify the following media, including their names and email
addresses:
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 • A business journalist for a daily newspaper in your market
• The editor of a community newspaper in your area
• The assignment editor for a television breakfast show in Edmonton
• A beauty or fashion editor for a national magazine
• A journalist for a digital news media outlet

Answer: The goal here is for students to start the process of identifying the journalists and
the media outlets in their community, as well as nationally. The ability to find the right
people and their contact details is an important skill in public relations, and this exercise
gives students practice. Some contacts may be more challenging to identify than others.
There are many ways students can get this information, such as conducting the search
online, visiting a newsstand, or telephoning the media outlets.

2. You are working as the publicist for the launch of the iPad and have been charged
with sending product samples to five top technology journalists across Canada. Which
journalists would you select? Cite the reasons for your choices.

Answer: A key part of creating a media database is making the executive decision about
which media to include out of dozens or hundreds of choices. Students here have an
opportunity to go through the process of selecting the media they believe would be best
suited for this product launch. In order to make this decision, they need to think about their
objectives and target audiences. They must carefully choose, as they have a limited number
of product samples with which to generate media coverage.

3. Examine the opening vignette, specifically focusing on the stories that were pitched to
the media and the coverage that was generated. Develop two story ideas that can be
pitched to the trade media (e.g., FranchiseCanada).

Answer: Angles can be customized for individual media. A trade magazine like
FranchiseCanada would look for stories of interest to its readers: professionals in the
franchise business who either own or sell franchises. Two stories that may be of interest
include how quickly Fairway franchises are selling and the uniqueness of the Fairway
divorce system.

Conducting Media Relations: Thinking Like a PR Practitioner (page 192)

1. Hundreds of journalists from all over the world descend on the Toronto International
Film Festival every year. The festival hosts a myriad of events for them, including the
red carpet, media conferences, film viewings, one-on-one interviews with filmmakers,
and receptions. Consider all the details that need organizing and list ten that you
believe are the most vital to the success of the media relations for the festival.

Answer: Conducting media relations for an event of this size and caliber takes a team of
dedicated publicists. There is a long list of tasks that need to be undertaken, including

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 • Writing a large number of media releases, backgrounders, and biographies
• Issuing media releases prior to the festival to generate interest
• Researching and registering journalists
• Scheduling interview times with different filmmakers and journalists
• Coordinating the special event logistics such as catering and audiovisuals
• Liaising with the publicists of the filmmakers
• Coordinating travel details
• Coordinating arrival times at the red carpet
• Providing ongoing support to journalists
• Organizing photo opportunities

2. You must organize a photo opportunity for the opening of a new luxury boutique hotel.
Assess what you can do to make the event newsworthy and of interest to the media.
Write the media advisory for this photo opportunity. Examine examples of media
advisories at Canada Newswire (www.canadanewswire.ca) to assist you, or refer to
Chapter 5.

Answer: PR practitioners must design photo opportunities. Journalists and photographers

are more likely to attend if what they can photograph will be unique and interesting. They
want to know what they will be able to see before they come. PR practitioners must work as
creative directors in staging eye-catching photos. They must also be able to draft a media
advisory that will position the event in a newsworthy way. Some photo opportunities could
include design and architectural elements, a charity element, VIPs, or even the hotel
restaurant chef.

3. Create a social media release for the boutique hotel. Describe in detail three elements
that you will include. Keep in mind that you must attract media attention with the
release. Visit Canada Newswire’s section dedicated to social media news releases
(smr.newswire.ca) and describe five recent examples. Do you believe they generated
coverage? Why or why not?

Answer: This question provides students with an opportunity to examine real-life social
media releases and to consider how they would create one for a specific organization.
Elements that can be included in a social media release include

• Photos
• Videos
• Live links to websites
• MP3 or podcast link
• Graphics

4. It is common for new PR practitioners to feel anxious about conducting follow-up with
journalists, especially by telephone. Do you believe you will feel this way? Why or why
not? Cite three steps you can take to successfully conduct telephone pitches to media.

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 Answer: Many students and junior practitioners feel intimidated by the idea of telephoning
media and sometimes try, to the detriment of media relations campaigns, to avoid it
altogether. It is a crucial and unavoidable part of the process. Preparation and practice make
it much easier. Some steps for success include

• Learning as much as you can about the product, industry, or organization so that you can
answer media questions proficiently
• Preparing all media materials before pitching so that you have information to send
journalists if they request it
• Writing the pitch
• Practising the pitch out loud
• Making sure the media are not on deadline when you call
• Rewriting the pitch based on feedback from journalists
• Pitching first thing in the morning when you are high on energy and enthusiasm

Case Study: Targeting Ethnic Media Outlets: Hamazaki Wong (page 193)

1. Appraise the work that was done to tailor the event for Chinese media. Break down the
steps that were taken to generate the media coverage.

Answer: Students should be able to identify the steps that were taken, including

• Translating the media materials into Chinese

• Compiling a media database
• Writing a Chinese media advisory
• Distributing the media advisory
• Calling journalists to invite them to the event
• Confirming with journalists on the day of the event
• Providing on-site assistance
• Coordinating interview times with the CEO
• Providing interpretation and answering questions as needed
• Following up with the media after the event to see if they have questions and to assess
coverage
• Writing an event summary and distributing to the media with photos
• Monitoring the media to collect coverage

2. Assess whether you need to belong to an ethnic group and/or speak the language to
successfully target this media audience.

Answer: The key here, as in all PR tactics, is to understand your target audience, and in this
case, the target audience is media of a specific ethnicity. You need to be familiar with how
they work and what stories are likely to be of interest to them. Whether you need to be a
member of that group to do that effectively is debatable. Certainly there are benefits, such as
having a firm understanding of the culture. A bigger advantage is speaking the language, as

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Solution Manual for Canadian PR for the Real World Maryse Cardin, Kylie McMullan

you can communicate easily with journalists and follow the news. It is not uncommon for
ethnic journalists to not speak English fluently. The services of a good translator that you
can trust are indispensable. By providing media materials in their native language, you are
able to have more control over the message and be less dependent on their interpretation.

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