Why the Media Release Still Matters

Sometimes I hate social media. A bottomless pit of information, innuendo and occasionally intrigue, it can suck hours from an otherwise productive life.

From a public relations point of view, however, there is no doubt social media has transformed the way organisations communicate. So much so, in fact, that there are those who declare the media release is dead, consigned to the grave alongside aerograms and the fax machine.

To be sure, Twitter is quicker, Instagram is more aesthetic, and LinkedIn is a great way to engage with your stakeholder network. But at Daymark we haven’t written off the media release just yet. Indeed, it is still very much part of our bread-and-butter work, sitting alongside social media, direct engagement with journalists, building stakeholder relationships, identifying thought leadership opportunities and all the other ways we work to protect and enhance our clients’ reputations.

A media release allows organisations to share news in sufficient detail to convey relevant messaging, highlighting why a development is important and sharing relevant quotes from an executive or spokesperson that personalise the story. A well-drafted media release will take into account potential weaknesses or issues relating to the news and put an organisation on the front foot in relation to these.

Most media releases, unsurprisingly, will initially reach a media audience. With just a tap of the keyboard, a release allows an organisation to broadcast news to a large number of publications and outlets simultaneously, who in turn may amplify the message to their audiences.

While ultimately speaking to a broader audience, the media release must first get past the newsdesk gatekeeper. This means ensuring a journalist can get the gist of the story in the first couple of paragraphs, understand the relevance to their audience, and have access to succinct and relevant quotes for incorporation in an article.

There are times we will create media statements or releases knowing that they may never be used. These are “reactive” statements that are only shared if and when a sensitive issue becomes public, or at least becomes known to an individual journalist. While no organisation wants to fuel stories on potentially damaging news, it is often more damaging to make no comment at all.

In these circumstances, having a media statement ready for sharing to a limited or broader section of the media (depending on the specific circumstances) is a valuable tool in preventing speculation and explaining an organisation’s position on a possibly controversial or negative subject.

Sometimes Daymark will recommend creation of a release even where we suspect media pick-up will be unlikely. These releases envisage bypassing the newsdesk and communicating directly with other stakeholders, including investors, customers, suppliers and even future employees. Most companies have a “news” section on their website, and including media releases here allows a company to record notable events, mark milestones and create a cohesive narrative around the organisation and its activities. A release created primarily for this purpose will only be shared with a very limited selection of journalists who might have a real interest in the news. Media adoption of the release is a bonus, but not the primary reason for the release.

Whatever the purpose of the media release, from publicity generation to damage control to branding and stakeholder positioning, careful thought should go into not just the tone and format but also where, when and how it is distributed.

Indeed, returning to the influence of social media, releases can also be distributed as a link through a company’s own channels. Social media provides organisations with a powerful way to communicate directly with internal and external networks, without the risk of the desired message being twisted in the telling.

There is an art to creating an effective media release, and we will look at this in a later blog, along with the risks of distributing a release too widely.

Used properly, however, the media release is still an extremely useful tool to be used not just alongside social media, but sometimes through it. Video might have killed the radio star, but thank goodness TikTok hasn’t called time on the media release just yet.