The No. 1 Problem

Lack of Newsworthiness: Journalists obviously prefer news releases about topics that satisfy their definitions of news. They look for topics that are new, local, interesting, unusual, relevant and important to their audience. Journalists also look for information likely to affect hundreds or even thousands of people. Action is more newsworthy than opinions, and a genuine or spontaneous event is more newsworthy than a contrived one. Unless they serve very small communities, news organizations increasingly refuse to publish news releases about ribbon-cutting and groundbreaking ceremonies. Newspapers also generally refuse to publish photographs showing people passing a check or gavel.

Limited Interest: News organizations may not use releases like the following because their topics would not interest many people—except, of course, members of the organizations they mention. Those organizations can use other means, such as newsletters, to communicate with their members. That is not the job of a news organization:

The Central States Podiatrists Association held its annual membership drive during its fall conference this week in Springfield.

Darwin Hughes, general manager of Atherton Sheet Metal and Pipefitting Inc., has been elected to a one-year term as director of educational programming for the Atherton Kiwanis Club.

Contrived Events: Reporters are likely to discard the following news releases because they announce contrived events:

The president has joined with the blood bank community proclaiming January as National Volunteer Blood Donor Month and is urging everyone who is healthy to donate blood to help others. Gov. Donald Austin has proclaimed April 20-26 as American Literacy Week in the state, to coincide with the president’s declaration of National Literacy Week during the same period.

Every week and every month of the year is dedicated to some cause, and often to dozens of causes. For example, May is Arthritis Month, National High Blood Pressure Month, National Foot Health Month, Better Speech and Hearing Month, National Tavern Month and American Bike Month. Furthermore, the two news releases state the obvious. Most responsible adults would urge “everyone who is healthy to donate blood to help others.” In the second release, since a National Literacy Week already exists, a state declaration is an unnecessary duplication. Stories about such proclamations are often trite, dull, repetitive and devoid of news value.

Rewriting for Newsworthiness: News releases issued by former Sen. William Proxmire, D-Wis., were classic examples of how individuals or organizations can draw attention to themselves by creating “news” Every month until his retirement, Proxmire issued a Golden Fleece a ward for what he considered “the biggest, most ironic or most ridiculous example of wasteful (government) spending.” It was a clever gimmick that attracted publicity for Proxmire because it played to an almost universal concern: Americans’ opposition to government waste.

A student assigned to write a story about one of Proxmire’s monthly awards began with this lead:

Sen. William Proxmire, D- Wis., has given his Golden Fleece of the Month Award for wasteful government spending to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

The lead is dull because it emphasizes the routine. The fact that Proxmire gave another award is not news; what he gave it for is. In addition, the lead contains three names: Proxmire’s, NASA’s and the award’s. It needs to be simplified.

The proposed National Aeronautics and Space Administration program “is a low priority program that at this time constitutes luxury that the country can ill afford,” Sen. William Proxmire, D- Wis., has complained.

Notice that the revision mentions Proxmire’s name in the second paragraph rather than in the lead and that the focus of the lead is on the project that received the award.

Many of the people writing news releases seem to be more interested in pleasing their bosses than in satisfying the media and informing the public. To please their bosses, they begin news releases with their bosses’ names.

Other news releases are editorials that philosophize or praise rather than report information beneficial to the public a news release submitted by a state’s beef producers declared:

Red meat makes a contribution to America’s health and vitality and should be saluted.

We often overlook the fact that American meat products are known throughout the world for their quality, wholesomeness and delicious flavor. This week is National Meat Week, and it is an excellent opportunity to recognize the important contribution red meat makes to the diets of more than 250 million Americans who have made meat one of the country’s favorite foods. Meat is more than a satisfying meal-it’s part of a healthy, well-balanced diet

The media will not praise or editorialize in a news story. That is not their job, nor is it ethical for them to do so.

News organizations might use the following releases because they describe topics likely to interest some readers. However, both news releases would require some rewriting to emphasize the news and conform to the style-especially the type of lead- suitable to newspapers.

The president of a national organization representing psychiatrists all over the United States marked National Mental Health Week by calling for better care for America’s seriously mentally ill citizens. The National Psychiatric Association, which represents medical doctors who diagnose and treat severe mental illness, is focusing considerable time and effort on the issue during National Mental Health Week to galvanize support and awareness in its selfless struggle to shed light on these terrible human conditions.

During his opening address at the National Psychiatric Association annual conference, National Psychiatric Association President Dr. Paul Steinmetz demanded that state and federal legislation be implemented that would require the health insurance industry to stop discriminating against the mentally ill and provide sufficient care under health care plans provided by public and private employers.

Programs making war violence exciting and fun entertainment are said to lead the new Fall programs, according to the National Coalition on Television Violence (NCTV). NCTV has just released its most recent monitoring results of prime-time network programs. Violence is portrayed at the rate of about seven violent acts per hour, with new programs taking three of the top four violent spots. ABC continued to be the most violent network for the fourth quarter in a row.