|
TL;DR - Key takeaways:
|
When your carefully crafted press release is met with crickets, it’s tempting to blame the subject line, the timing, or the story itself. And sometimes, sure, those things play a part. But often the issue starts earlier: the same pitch is being sent to very different journalists with very different jobs to do.
A freelance journalist trying to sell a story to an editor does not need the same thing as a trade reporter who has covered your industry for ten years. Treating them the same is a recipe for indifference.
The numbers back that up. According to Muck Rack’s 2024 State of Journalism report, 73% of journalists reject pitches because they are not relevant to their coverage area.
That sounds bleak, but there’s another way to look at it. Journalists still use PR pitches. Muck Rack’s 2025 State of Journalism report found that 84% of journalists say at least some of their stories originate from PR pitches.
So the opportunity is there. PR teams just need to get sharper at identifying what different journalists need, then pitch the story in a way that fits their world.
Today, we’re breaking down six common journalist profiles and looking at how to pitch each one without becoming another inbox casualty.
Before getting into the profiles, it’s worth saying this: media relations does not start and end with one pitch.
The journalists who answer your emails today may be the same people you need during a launch, a funding announcement, or a crisis. A journalist who knows you are relevant and responsive is far more likely to give your next email a proper look.
Let’s zoom in on relevance for a second.
Relevance here means understanding what a journalist covers, how they work, and what makes their life easier. That is especially important when journalists have more control over the stories they pursue. According to Muck Rack’s 2025 State of Journalism report, 92% of journalists either pitch or fully decide which stories they work on. Which means they’re making editorial decisions all day, every day, not sitting around waiting for your next release. Your job is to make responding a no-brainer.
A few ways PR teams can do that:
|
FEATURED RESOURCE Help your PR pitches dodge the delete button with 7 no-nonsense media relations best practices for real engagement. |
Here are the six types of journalists PR teams need to know:
Of course, no two journalists work exactly the same way. But these six profiles cover many of the people PR and communications teams interact with every day.
To make things easier, we've given each one a name.
Ben’s been all over your industry for years. If you're in healthcare, he's spent thousands of hours writing about healthcare. If you're in aviation, he knows every major player, every merger, and every regulatory development from the last decade.
Ben is looking for sources and specifics. He definitely doesn’t need another ‘your industry for dummies’ write-up.
Dislikes
Gets excited by
Ben is secretly wondering...
Beat reporters tend to think long term, and unlike some journalists, they're not looking for a single story. They're more interested in a network of reliable contacts they can return to repeatedly.
That’s why relationship building matters so much with this group; a good interaction today can result in opportunities months down the line.
The biggest mistake PR teams make with beat reporters is focusing on the announcement instead of the relationship.
When pitching Ben, lead with why the story matters specifically to his coverage area. Show you've read his work. Offer access to people, information, and expertise that help him understand what's happening in the industry.
Frankie’s job is slightly different from most journalists.
Before she can write the story, she usually needs to convince an editor that the angle is worth commissioning in the first place.
A company announcement might be enough for a staff reporter covering a beat, but Frankie? She needs a story.
Dislikes
Gets excited by
Frankie is secretly wondering...
Freelancers are constantly looking for ideas they can turn into articles, which is why company news alone often falls flat. Frankie needs something she can pitch to an editor who has no emotional attachment to your company or product.
Strong PR pitches give her most of what she needs upfront: a clear angle, relevant data, and a source who is available for interview. Maybe even a few ideas for how the story connects to a larger trend.
If you want to help Frankie sell the story internally, think less "here's our news" and more "here's a story your readers might give a s**t about."
Nadia is reading your email while juggling six other stories.
She’s working against deadlines measured in minutes. If something newsworthy happens at 9:00, at 9:01 she's on the case. Speed shapes everything about how Nadia works.
Dislikes
Gets excited by
Nadia is secretly wondering...
Nadia needs the news ASAP.
She’s not interested in three paragraphs of company background or a lengthy explanation of your mission - the story comes first.
If you're pitching a news desk journalist, put the news in the first sentence. Make key facts easy to find, have a spokesperson available, and include supporting information that can be verified quickly.
Most importantly, move fast. Today’s hottest story becomes a hell of a lot less interesting when someone else publishes it first.
Finn is looking for people, ideas, conflict, change, and the details that make readers keep scrolling. He’s not really a ‘breaking news’ kinda guy,
In fact, the story often matters more than the announcement.
A funding round might interest Nadia because it's news. Finn is more interested in what happened before the funding round, what challenges the founders faced, or how customers were affected along the way.
Dislikes
Gets excited by
Finn is secretly wondering...
Features journalists typically work on longer timelines than news reporters, which gives them more freedom to explore a story from different angles.
Finn is looking for interesting people. Customers with stories to tell, founders with genuine challenges, or employees with unusual experiences. Anything that helps bring a topic to life.
The best thing PR teams can do is provide access and then step back. Want a great piece? Give Finn the raw materials for a great story and let him build it in his own way.
Bianca likes stories she can show, not just tell.
Whether she’s working on a TV segment, YouTube interview, or podcast episode, she’s thinking about the audience experience from the jump. What will people see? What will they hear? Can we tell this story in a way that feels clear, credible, and alive?
A story that works beautifully in print won’t work for Bianca if there’s nothing engaging to capture on camera or over the mic.
Dislikes
Gets excited by
Bianca is secretly wondering...
Broadcast journalists need engaging footage, interesting locations, and compelling interviews. They need real people doing real things.
If you're pitching Bianca, lead with what the audience will see or hear. Don't bury the visual angle halfway down the email.
Top tip? Before offering up a spokesperson, make sure they're prepared. A subject matter expert who freezes on camera can kill an otherwise good story.
Theo knows your industry like the back of his hand.
He attends the same conferences, follows the same regulations, and speaks to the same specialists day in, day out. In some sectors, particularly across manufacturing, technology, logistics, healthcare, and energy, Theo may actually know more about the topic than the spokesperson you're pitching.
That's why surface-level stories rarely land with him.
Dislikes
Gets excited by
Theo is secretly wondering...
Trade or specialist press journalists usually serve niche audiences.
Their readers already understand the industry and aren’t looking for introductory explainers or broad business updates. They want details, context, and information they can't find anywhere else.
When pitching Theo, trim the fat. Lead with a technical angle, the industry implications, or that crucial data point.
Most importantly, make sure your spokesperson knows their stuff.
There are many different journalist specialisms, but most PR teams regularly encounter six broad categories: beat reporters, freelance journalists, news desk journalists, features writers, broadcast journalists, and trade or specialist press journalists.
Each works differently, serves a different audience, and looks for different kinds of stories.
Start by understanding how that journalist works.
A news desk journalist needs speed and clear facts. A features writer needs people and stories. A freelance journalist needs an angle they can sell to an editor. They each have unique needs.
The best pitches are tailored to the journalist, not copied across an entire media list.
According to Muck Rack's 2024 State of Journalism report, the most common reason is relevance.
If a story doesn't match what a journalist covers, it's unlikely to get a response, no matter how well written the pitch is.
Yes.
Muck Rack's 2025 State of Journalism report found that 86% of journalists say PR pitches contribute to at least some of the stories they publish.
The roadblock is whether your pitch is relevant to the person receiving it.
One of the biggest mistakes PR teams make is assuming every journalist wants the same thing. They don’t. They need a targeted, personalised approach that aligns with how they work and who they work for.
The more you understand how journalists work, the easier it becomes to give them what they're actually looking for. And when that happens, media relations starts feeling a lot less like sending emails into the void.
Want more tips on what journalists really want? Check out our LIVE webinar!