How to pitch assignment editors
Assignment editors are key to the success of a broadcast television station – many people consider them the “air traffic controllers” of the newsroom. I think an article that originally ran in the Communicator described it best when they said assignment editors “monitor scanners, manage news crews, make beat checks and generate stories.” If you have a story that’s timely, or can provide expert commentary on current, or better yet, breaking news, the assignment editor or person working the assignment desk could be your best bet for getting a story.
Assignment editors are notoriously busy, always stressed and never have a minute to spare. Remember, whether or not you get covered depends on a million different factors that day – the importance of other breaking news, how many camera crews the station has, weather, station politics…don’t be discouraged. If you’ve got a good story with strong visuals, you’ve got a chance. And if you’re lucky, it will be a slow news day.
How do you pitch someone like that, particularly if they’re at a national network? Here are a few ways to make sure your story crosses the desk and gets noticed.
- Pitch the generic email along with the AE. If the AE is out of town, or gone for some reason, others will be working the assignment desk will be checking that email. It’s usually news@domain.com or something simple. If you’re not sure, call the station and ask them.
- Use media alerts instead of releases. I like to send an email that includes the main information in the subject line or first line of the email, and then give them the 5W’s – who, what when, where, why. This is an excellent way to organize the information in a way they can see quickly and without any extra fluff.
- Put your main point in the FIRST SENTENCE – the subject line is even better. PR expert Sarah Evans moderates a #journchat on Twitter, and in one of those sessions CNN Assignment Editor Steve Brusk provided these comments:
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Q3 PER ANON: What’s the best way to pitch you? What types of stories are you looking for? What works?
STEVE: With a network like CNN, best way to pitch is to tailor what you’re offering. Any assignment desk or newscast will MORE always be on lookout for angle or guest, but needs change day to day. Two good ways to pitch us by e-mail: cnndesk@turner.com for stories, and guests@cnn.com for interviews. Timing is very important — be aware of the day’s news. A pitch on a feature when swine flu or a mass shooting has occured will NEVER get seen. If you have an angle or an expert tied to a timely story, hit that hard right up top. “We have an expert who worked with cdc and researching pandemics” will help separate the pitch.
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- Be available 24/7 and respond IMMEDIATELY if they call. The assignment desk might decide to send a camera out to your event or to interview your expert….in the next HOUR. Literally, it happens that fast. If you can’t react that quickly don’t bother. The way it works is that the desk assigns the story to a producer or reporter (if it’s local, it’s likely to be a reporter.) That journalist then needs to call you, usually right away, and get the camera crew out to meet you or to your event. If you don’t have a sense of urgency on this, it can mean they just move on to the next story.
- Make sure you call to confirm they have your email. That’s okay to do in this case. Sometimes they get 100′s of emails and once you quickly explain what it’s about, they often ask you to send again. Feel free to ask if you’re “on the schedule” or whether they will be passing on the story at this time.
- Be accommodating for the reporter. Try to anticipate anything they might need in terms of background information, visuals, suggested shots, etc. They may or may not use it, but they’ll definitely be grateful!
Again, I can’t stress enough that you have to be brief, ultra-responsive and ready to go at any minute.
May 21st, 2010 at 3:05 pm
This seems like an intense process, but I can understand the urgency. It’s the nature of the business to be constantly moving. It seems much harder to break into than print.
May 25th, 2010 at 3:13 pm
It can be easier, actually. If it’s a slow news day they will often jump on things you wouldn’t expect.
July 8th, 2010 at 11:41 am
[...] assignment editors who are moving faster than the speed of light in most cases. (You can read my blog post on pitching assignment editors for more tips on this unique group of journalists) Sarah Evans did a nice summary of a recent [...]
July 15th, 2010 at 12:02 pm
[...] I covered pitching events, your breaking news or getting included as an expert source in the How To Pitch Assignment Editors post. The other ways you can get coverage are through feature stories (sometimes called [...]