How to Contact the Media About a Story

Choosing a Media Outlet

Reach out to a major media outlet if you have info on a big story. It is exceptionally difficult to get a story picked up by a major media outlet, like CNN, BBC, or The Guardian, but if you have the scoop on something big, go for it! A serious crime, insider information on a major corporation, and uplifting stories of the human spirit all belong in major news publications. Choose to contact major media outlets if you have information on something big! Journalists are often quite busy and popular reporters get tons of tips and pitches to sort through. This process may take you a few weeks, or even months, depending on how busy the news outlet is and how long the story will take to investigate or report on. A breaking story about a child kidnapping deserves to be on a major media outlet. However, smaller, area-specific stories, like mall openings and fundraisers, are more likely to be picked up by local organizations. You can contact multiple news outlets at once. There’s nothing wrong with reaching out to multiple organizations with the same story.

Pick a local news outlet for smaller stories that impact your region. Local news outlets report on stories that are relevant to a specific city or region, regardless of the seriousness of the story. Store openings, petty crime, human-interest stories, and local political events are all covered by local news outlets. Choose a local news outlet if you have information on a story that relates to people in your area. For example, if you’re hosting a fundraiser for your neighbor who lost their house in a fire, contact a local news outlet. The local community will care about the neighbor and their readers/viewers will want to know about the fundraiser, which makes it likely that they will pick the story up. If you want to pitch a story to a local news organization, contact local newspapers and television stations at the same time. Both mediums are excellent resources for getting a story out.

Contact a specific reporter if you have a specialized story. Veteran reporters usually specialize in a specific type of journalism. For example, if you have a story about a little league baseball tournament, choose a local sports reporter for your story. If you’re trying to pitch a story about a local business that’s scamming people and you know of a local reporter that carries out tough interviews, contact that reporter to get a strong result.Warning: There’s nothing wrong with contacting multiple reporters at once, but don’t contact 2 reporters at the same outlet. If they both want to pick the story up, you may create some bad will with the organization and will likely be turned away.

Reach out to an investigative reporting team for immoral or criminal leads. Investigative reporters are kind of like detectives; they reference police reports, conduct witness interviews, and do field work to uncover the truth. Contact a local investigative reporting team if you have unique information on a crime, shady business, or believe that you’ve been wronged or treated unfairly. If you have firsthand knowledge of a crime and the police are unaware that the crime has occurred, contact your local police district before taking the story to a reporter. Reach out as an anonymous source by using a VPN and a new email account or calling the media outlet from a pay phone if you’re worried about retaliation from the subject of the story.

Publish a press release for any outlet to pick your story up. A press release is a formal public announcement about a significant event or experience. If you want to publicly give any news outlet the opportunity to report on something, write a press release. You can send a press release to media outlets or publish it yourself on a business or personal website. To write a press release, write a headline that summarizes the information, include a few relevant details for the press, and include contact information for further inquiries. An example press release may begin with the headline, “Magic Kayaks opening a new store on Foster Avenue.” In the body, say something like, “Magic Kayaks, the brand behind the patented double-decker kayak, will be opening a brand-new store in early August at 2025 Foster Avenue in Springfield. The store will feature 3 floors of products and will even include a custom kayak service. For more information, call 555-5252 with questions or concerns.” If you have a lot of reporters contacting you about a story, writing a press release is a great way to give them information without spending the time to craft a unique response to every inquiry.

Contacting Media Outlets

Use a VPN or pay phone if you want to remain anonymous. VPN stands for virtual private network, and is a type of web browser that hides your IP address to protect your privacy. Download a VPN and create a new email account with an ambiguous name before contacting media outlets if you want to stay anonymous. If you’re going to call the media outlet, use a pay phone.Tip: Using *67 to block your number still leaves a trace that the call came from your phone, and it won’t actually disable every caller ID. It may keep you anonymous in some cases, but it won’t always block your number. The only reason to remain anonymous is if you’re scared of retribution or are releasing sensitive information that could get you in trouble. If you’re trying to promote something, don’t make an anonymous contact with the media.

Look on the media outlet’s website for an email address. To find contact information for a newspaper or TV station, search the name of the media outlet online. Find the organization’s website and search for an “About Us” or “Contact” tab. Most news organizations publish an email or phone number for tips on stories. Use this email or phone number to contact the press and tell them about your story. Some newspapers and magazines will list their contact information on the back or inside of the first page.

Contact a specific reporter using email or social media. If you want to reach out to a specific reporter, start by looking on the news organization’s website to see if they break contact information down for individual reporters. If you find the reporter on the organization’s website, use that email address or phone number. Alternatively, search the reporter’s name on Facebook or Twitter to see if they have any social media accounts. If they do, send them a private message to tell them about your story. Reporters often maintain social media accounts to promote their stories.

Call the media outlet if you can’t find contact information. If the media outlet doesn’t list a specific email address or phone number for stories, call the general number for their office listed online. Ask the person behind the desk who to contact regarding your story and follow their directions to determine who you need to talk with to get your story out there. You may end up struggling to find contact information for smaller publications.

Pitching Your Scoop

Tell your story in a clear and straightforward way. Avoid using highly-descriptive imagery or going overboard with your adjectives. Providing the reporter with the essential details will give the reporter a clear image of what the point of the story is. On the other hand, using a lot of descriptive language may make the reporter think you’re trying to make them feel a certain way about the subject.Tip: Reporters pride themselves on being objective and direct. Using diction and language that they respect will make them more likely to pick up your story. For example, saying, “My home was broken into, but the police aren’t picking up my calls” will incentivize the reporter to look into the story on their own. However, “The police in this town are corrupt, malicious, and neglectful. Some vagrant stole all of my belongings and the police refuse to even file a report” will make them suspicious that you’re making the story up. Don’t write more than a paragraph. Reporters are typically quite busy and they may simply stop reading if you keep adding unimportant details.

Explain the significance of your story and don’t exaggerate. Depending on the story you’re pitching, it may not be immediately clear what the relevance of your story is. After providing details about the content of your story, write a few lines about why the story should be covered. However, avoid exaggerating. If you seem like you’re pushing an agenda, the reporter may think you have a personal stake in the way the story is reported. Say something like, “I believe this story is relevant to the parents of our city because our school’s principal is in violation of state laws” or, “I haven’t seen any reporters covering this crime, but it sounds like a pretty outlandish event.” If you’re pitching a story involving criminal or immoral behavior, it can look like you have a vendetta against the subject if you insert your personal commentary about someone’s guilt. Use bland language and don’t go over the top to seem impartial and honest.

Thank the outlet or reporter for reading your story. Reporters get dozens of pitches every week and they’re under no obligation to pick up your story. Let the reporter know that you appreciate them taking the time to read your pitch. Close out your letter or phone conversation with 1-2 sentences of gratitude. For example, you might say, “Thank you for taking the time to learn a little more about what’s going on in our local community. I appreciate your work and hope to hear from you in the future.”

Provide your contact info so they can follow up with you if necessary. If you aren’t leaving an anonymous tip, make sure that you leave a phone number for the reporter to contact you. A reporter may want to pick your story up, but if they can’t reach you for follow-up questions, they may not be able to write a complete piece!