As I celebrate the 24th anniversary of my blogging this week, I thought I’d share my ten cents about dealing with journalists since I’ve been quoted through the years quite a bit. During the height of the Sarbanes-Oxley implementation craze, I’d talk to at least two reporters per week.
The $64,000 question for you should be: “how do I get quoted in the media?” The answer is that you need to become a source. And the best way to do that is develop a business relationship. Like any relationship, you have to place yourself in the journalist’s shoes. Be empathetic.
From the journalist’s perspective, they need to find good story ideas to take to their editors. Something juicy that’s going to sell newspapers. Sharing compelling story ideas is the fastest way to win a reporter’s heart. Doing that by email is your best bet. Most journalists work very hard. They’re on deadline. They have limited time to shoot the breeze.
There’s nothing wrong with sending an email to a journalist even though you’ve never met them. An unsolicited approach. Their email addresses can often be found online. They love to get story ideas – and feedback – from their readers. They are accessible.
If you happen to meet a journalist at a conference, go ahead and introduce yourself. Show them that you’re “normal.” The bonus is that I find they tend to be interesting people. They’re knowledgeable. Curious. And they may help you in ways you hadn’t considered if you develop a real relationship. They know a lot of people. They know a lot about how the real world works.
Don’t Expect to Be Quoted
If you pay attention to media articles, there are fewer quotes from sources than you might think. It’s actually pretty hard to be quoted by name. But it does happen.
When I work with a journalist, I go in with the attitude of “I’m going to help this nice person but I’m not expecting anything out of it.” That way, I’m not disappointed.
In fact, the journalist might ask you for a quote – and fully intends for it to be in the piece – but their editor might cut it. The journalist doesn’t have the final word on what gets included in the final product. That happens quite a bit. Be resilient and don’t take it personally.
How to Increase Your Odds of Being Quoted
Here’s where a lot of lawyers get stuck. They’re used to being cautious. Not willing to share opinions. Not being colorful. Those all are traits for a quote that isn’t going to see the light of day.
The quote you offer can’t read like a law firm memo. It has to have a little pizzazz. I always preach to “write like you talk.” That goes double for quotes. It should sound a little off-the-cuff.
The people you see get quoted often are ones that journalists think are “quippy.” (shout out to Francine McKenna for coining this term!) They’re always ready with a quote if a reporter calls because they keep up the action in their arena – and they know how to make dry material come to life with a provocative or memorable take. It helps if they are willing to face the consequences of a strong opinion. A journalist might be willing to accept your boring quote. But their editor is likely to toss it if it’s boring.
Remember that quotes typically are short. Less is more. They might only be a handful of words long. A dozen at the most. Look at a paper to get an idea of what is being accepted by that publication.
Offer to Send a Quote by Email
This doesn’t always work for the journalist, but I often have a phone conversation to answer any questions that they might have. As part of that conversation, I offer to email over a quote for them to consider if they need it.
Since I’m experienced in the art of “what’s a good quote,” this arrangement works out for both of us much of the time. Doing this benefits me because I can control the risk of being misquoted – and it also allows me to ensure my unusual name is spelled properly. It benefits the reporter because they can cut and paste from my email.
Getting Your Name and Affiliation Right
A journalist isn’t going to show you a draft of what they’ve written up. If you’re dealing with them over the phone, you’re not even going to know what they’re going to grab from your conversation as a quote. That’s just the way it works.
I recommend that you make some effort to ensure that the reporter gets your name spelled correctly. Same with the spelling of who you work for. Particularly if either of those are hard to spell. Offer to send the reporter an email with the proper spelling and preferred affiliation. It really takes the air out of your balloon to be quoted with your name spelled incorrectly.
Note that some publications won’t use your affiliation the way you want them to, regardless of what you tell them. For example, in my old job, I wanted them to say I was “Editor of TheCorporateCounsel.net.” But often they would either say I was a former SEC lawyer – or leave out my affiliation altogether. There’s nothing you can do about that other than try for what you want.
Authored by
Broc Romanek