Contact Information: CONTACT: Malayna Williams PWR New Media office: 312.924.4224 cell: 312.925.5152
PWR New Media Releases New Journalist Survey Highlighting Changing Role of Media in Today's Economy
60% of Respondents Now Contribute to Blogs, Websites or Other New Media
| Source: PWR New Media
CHICAGO, IL--(Marketwire - February 11, 2009) - Journalists are more frequently required to
contribute to a blog, e-newsletter, website or other new media outlets than
any previous year, according to a survey released this week by PWR New
Media, a leading e-marketing firm based in Chicago, Illinois. 60% of
journalists responded that they now contribute to a blog or other on-line
site. 39% of these journalists said they acquired these responsibilities in
the past year and 71% added on-line work to their duties in the past two
years.
A potential contributor to this shift in job responsibilities is the
recession; as jobs are cut at major media organizations, the remaining
journalists are required to take on additional responsibilities, mainly in
the new media area. Gone are the days when the print version and the
website of a publication had different editorial staff. Today, a journalist
is likely to contribute to all the different forms of communication that
his publication uses. On top of that, new technology has changed the way
news is consumed so the new forms of communication are of greater
importance.
"I'm writing a LOT more for the web," commented one journalist. Another
stated that his responsibilities had "completely changed over from print to
online. I only work on two printed publications now... All other
newsletters/news is provided via the Web."
In addition to questions related to direct job responsibilities, PWR also
asked how the media wanted to receive, and what they expected with,
releases. 89% of surveyed journalists identified email as their preferred
method of receiving releases. In the words of one respondent: "The best way
to ensure that your story is covered is to send the release electronically.
Sending a fax or mailed release puts the story outside of the computer
desktop and outside of mind and harder to reuse your language as it would
have to be transcribed."
An almost equal number of journalists (85%) said they wanted images with
every release. "The absolute, most important supplement to a press release
is editorial-quality, hi-resolution photographs to illustrate the story,"
responded one journalist. "Good art is always an incentive to continuing
with a story; if a good pitch comes along but there isn't any art
available, nine times out of 10, we pass on the story."
"It is exciting to see the shift from traditional press kits to the more
web-friendly New Media Releases," said Malayna Williams, one of the
founders of PWR New Media. "More and more, we are seeing journalists making
new media a priority and we always counsel our clients to make their
announcements as web-friendly as they can; thus, making it easier for
journalists to incorporate their content."
The more exposure journalists have to new media, the more they rely on it
for information and digital content. For this reason, as journalists'
duties continue to expand in the new media area, their knowledge base and
expectations will also expand. Therefore, public relations professionals
should strive to include digital content, like photos and video with embed
codes, in all their releases.
"We have, for some time, been providing extra content on our website that
complements what we are able to include in the magazine. We are also
gearing up our official blog, which will allow us greater flexibility in
the immediacy of the topics we can cover," commented one magazine reporter.
215 journalists participated in the on-line survey and spanned all media
types: newspaper (57%), magazine (25%), Internet (5%), television (4%),
radio (2%) and news service (2%). For the complete survey results, click
here:
http://www.pwrnewmedia.com/2009/powerlines_winter/downloads/journalistsurvey2009.pdf
About PWR New Media
PWR New Media is a leading marketing firm specializing in New Media press
releases and e-marketing. Founded in 2006, PWR New Media provides
high-level counsel and campaign execution for both small businesses as well
as Fortune 500 clients, including Energizer, Bath & Body Works, McCormick,
and Motorola. To learn more, please visit www.pwrnewmedia.com.
To view a media-rich version of this release, go to:
http://www.pwrnewmedia.com/2009/pwr_release021109/index.html