By Arthur Solomon
When I first landed a full-time job as a journalist, after years of steady freelancing for major New York dailies and the AP, my editor said the first thing I must do every morning at work is read every story in the sections of all newspapers that covered the areas of my beat.
Then I had to go through the remainder of the papers and, at a minimum, read the first few paragraphs of every other story. “That will make you a well-rounded reporter,” he would say, and added, “You never know when you might be called upon to report on a story that is outside your domain.”
Because my first beat was sports, it wasn’t long before the stories I was covering could be reported either in the back of the paper or up front.
Always a news junkie, I credit becoming a student of the major dailies, business magazines, feature news services and the important TV shows as playing an important facet in my climb up the Burson-Marsteller ladder during a nearly 25-year career there.
In today’s Internet and social media era, major newspapers remain extremely important to those of us in the communications field.
Here’s why:
- Major stories or op-Eds in important dailies are still considered “big hits.” Newspapers also offer a target audience: stories in health sections of papers are sought after by medical firms; new product announcements and reviews, business news, travel and entertainment stories in their special sections.
- Major national newspapers like the Wall Street Journal, New York Times and USA Today are read by top corporate officials.
- A placement in a major daily can pave the way for additional placements.
- Reading the newspapers will make you a better-rounded individual, able to sound knowledgeable about non-account subjects that are discussed with family, agency higher-ups and clients in social settings.
When I entered the PR world, executives could discuss all aspects of the news business.
An important reason was that many PR people came from the news business. Several years later, as newspaper salaries improved, fewer journalists jumped to PR firms and lower–salaried communication school grads became the norm. The takeover wave followed. While keeping their founding names, PR firms became profit centers and squeezed by conglomerate owners for ever-greater margins to please Wall Street.
In an attempt to maximize profits, free newspapers and important trade and general magazines for employees were eliminated at some agencies, causing an IQ decline in all aspects of print journalism, but especially newspaper IQ. The advent of the internet and cable TV hastened lack of interest in newspapers (and print in general) by many young account people.
The Wall Street Journal, New York Times, and USA Today are inexpensive textbooks, providing examples of good news and feature writing techniques. Carefully reading the newspapers and seeing how various stories are handled can also serve as a daily individual creative session and also provide current themes that tie clients into hot buttons when pitching or planning a program.
Perhaps printed newspapers will disappear over the next decade. But today, tomorrow, next week, next month and next year, major newspapers will still be an important part of our business and should be read on a daily basis.
The advice given to me by an editor during by first newspaper job applies to every PR person today: Keep current on the news, even if it has nothing to do with your assignment. Your client needs might change in a minute.
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Arthur Solomon is a former senior VP at Burson-Marsteller, where handled national and international accounts. He now is a frequent contributor to public relations and sports business publications, consults on public relations projects and is on the Seoul Peace Prize nominating committee. He is available at [email protected]. |