The fundamentals I learned in ON DEADLINE helped me create a successful media relations program. I liked this book because it helped me organize my efforts and target the appropriate audiences. Media Relations is a challenging job, and ON DEADLINE breaks it down into easy steps.
Whether you are new to this field or are on old pro, you can take away valuable tips from this book. From getting started to building trusting relationships with reporters to ethics to media events and through crisis planning, Mathews and Howard walk the reader through the challenges and rewards faced by media relations professionals.
Being on a journalist's "A" List is no accident...if you want to have a solid relationship with the media, you have to work at it. ON DEADLINE speaks to the virtues all media relations professionals must have to get the desired results for their companies. An effective media relations plan is more than a mound of newspaper clippings, and ON DEADLINE details the significance of strategic media relations planning. In Chapter 3, "Tools of the Trade," ON DEADLINE provides a no-nonsense approach to writing effective press releases that are worthy of news coverage. In addition, the main ideas from Chapter 6, entitled "Ethics - The Golden Rules of Media Relations," should be posted in the office of every media relations professional. Of course, what good is a media relations program without measuring the results? Chapter 10, "Evaluation," details methods that can be implemented to measure the effectiveness of any media relations effort.
If you want to be a successful media relations professional, ON DEADLINE is the only book you will need to succeed in this business.