Reporters and You: Building Relationships

I have always found the stereotypical portrayal of the relationships between public relations practitioners and reporters to be quite humorous. Last semester, I attended a couple of the National Press Photographers Association's seminars at Texas State University. Although the reporters, producers and other press crew at the conference continued to refer to me as "the enemy," they made it very apparent they were impressed I was taking the initiative to learn what little I could about their business. They also invited me to an awesome after-party, but that's for another post.

As PR practitioners, it is in our best interest to build strong relationships with members of the media. I believe the biggest keys to this are showing reporters that we are competent and professional at our jobs. A great article at PR Daily offers some excellent advice on this subject. The article serves as an important reminder that reporters are people too and our connections with them may last longer than relationships with our clients. Remember to always be honest, make sure your story is newsworthy and research the publication and reporter you are pitching to.