Here’s a story that caught our eye.
A council has announced it will no longer email ‘traditional press releases’ to journalists.
Instead, it will publish announcements, news releases, and information on its website and social media channels.
According to the council, the move is part of a “digital first approach to sharing news”, which it hopes will grow its “digital audience”.
This all sounds shiny and modern. So, is it an approach other organisations should follow? Or is there more to this story?
Bristol City Council made its press release announcement last week.
In a letter to media organisations in the city, it said: “We hope that by growing our digital audiences, we will be able to reach more people with vital messages, including seldom heard groups.
"We are adopting a proactive approach on our online channels, with news stories now shared in the first instance on the BCC news website and on our social channels.”
It added: "This content is unrestricted, so everyone is able to access it in real time. This change means we won’t be emailing traditional press releases.”
The council is encouraging journalists to add its site to RSS feeds, which means they receive alerts when news is published.
Bristol City Council stops sending media organisations press releaseshttps://t.co/yDqYiIX8QT
— Bristol Live (@BristolLive) July 8, 2022
Perhaps the move is not that surprising.
People have been talking about the demise of the press release for a long time. I was still working in the public sector when Alex Aiken, the executive director of government comms, boldly declared it had died back in 2013 and argued that tweets, infographics and video were better ways of getting messages out.
Yet, almost a decade on, countless surveys show journalists still want to receive press releases.
We covered Cision’s Global State of The Media report in our media training blogs last year. More than 85 per cent of the journalists who took part in that survey said they wanted to receive news announcements and press releases.
Not only that, but the anecdotal evidence from our current working journalist tutors suggests organisations have to work harder to generate coverage from their press releases.
Speaking during a masterclass for members of The Media Team Academy earlier this year, journalist Emma Nelson said: “I need the press releases that are sent through to be spot on so that we can act on it efficiently.
“We have a much more predictable day now because there are fewer resources. The idea of being able to travel all over the place to find things has long gone.
“If you are doing a pitch or sending a press release, can you make sure that everything we need is in one place?”
You can read more from Emma and her thoughts on press releases and pitching in this media training blog.
But let’s get back to the Bristol City Council announcement.
Because while the council presents the decision as embracing the digital world and attempting to reach more people, it could be seen as a petulant move.
The decision has been made against a backdrop of multiple news organisations in the city - including the BBC and ITV West Country - boycotting press conferences held by Mayor of Bristol Marvin Rees.
That row was sparked by the authority barring two local democracy reporters working for Bristol Live from attending the fortnightly briefings after one asked about the mayor’s decision to fly 9,000 miles to Canada to give a 14-minute TED talk on climate change.
For those who don’t know, the local democracy reporting service sees the BBC fund 165 local democracy reporters across the UK to report on local authorities.
Footage of an awkward exchange where the journalist was criticised for asking the question was posted on Twitter. And it has been viewed more than 300,000 times.
A bit stunned to see the publicly funded external comms person at the mayor’s presser seem to ask the local democracy reporter @AlexGSeabrook to justify his question to the mayor about the irony of flying 9000 miles to talk about climate change. #democracy ? pic.twitter.com/cd6QU5bu7K
— Joanna Booth (@stillawake) June 21, 2022
The National Union of Journalists described the ban as “anti-democratic”.
We should say the mayor insists the reporters are not banned, they are simply “not invited”.
He told a council meeting: “Nobody’s been banned. I didn’t invite you to my birthday party, but I didn’t ban you from it.
“It’s not statutory, I’m not required to do it, we do it to give journalists easy access to me to ask whatever they want, and we can invite whoever we want.”
Whatever words are used, the result is the same.
And that makes the timing of the press release announcement problematic.
Perhaps the digital drive had been decided some time ago. But when you announce it during a media boycott, the optics are not pretty. And it can be viewed as a further attempt to close down public scrutiny.
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But let’s take this dispute out of it. Is this an approach other councils and organisations should adopt?
Well, it feels like a move with lots to lose and little to gain. When journalists, particularly those working in local media, are more time-pressed than ever, organisations need to make it easier for them to cover stories, not harder.
There are other considerations. Firstly, trust. Will people believe news published direct on a website? Or are they more likely to trust a story that has been scrutinised by journalists?
And secondly, there must also be a question about visibility.
Where do people turn to when they want to know what is happening in their area?
Local news, whether newspapers, radio or TV, has been hit by cutbacks. Local newspapers, in particular, have been in decline for years. Some are no longer printed at all.
But demand is still there.
During the pandemic, many local newspaper websites recorded record visitor numbers as people sought a clearer local understanding of a national crisis and a trusted voice.
Many other people will use local Facebook groups.
But how many of us turn to our local council website for news rather than information about services?
Bristol City Council may think this new approach means it will get its messages out unfiltered. But bypassing the media means few residents are likely to see them.
Media First are media and communications training specialists with over 35 years of experience. We have a team of trainers, each with decades of experience working as journalists, presenters, communications coaches and media trainers.
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