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News Release Writing
Office of University
Communications
Lee Tune

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Introduction
 It‟s a News Release
– News
 Understand it
 Find it
 Write it
 Send it out

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Keys to a Successful Release
 Who Do You Love?
 Know your audience(s)!
 That‟s Great! But Is It News?
 Grab Em by the Head(line) and Lead
 and the body (of the story) will follow

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Who Do You Love?
 Who are your audience(s)
– General public
– Alumni
– Academic peers
– Boss
 What are they likely to find compelling or
at least interesting?
 What media best reach them?

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Who Do You Love (continued)
– Media: love em or leave em?
 Press coverage is one way to reach audiences
 What about other vehicles
– Communication: it takes two baby
 Start with your communication goals and messages
(strategic and specific) in mind.
 But, news value (what will interest your audience)
should determine focus of release.

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Is It News?
 Defining News
– What your audience cares about, likes, etc.
– Classic definitions
 , News is:
– “Anything that will make people talk”
– Timely, important, „close to home‟
– Original, distinctive, thrilling, unique, curious, sexy
 It frequently has:
– Impact, emotional appeal, human interest, conflict, and
significance

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Writing the Release
 Headline and Lead
– These are the two most important parts of a
release
 A reporter, editor, or other reader probably won‟t
get to the body of the release unless the headline
and lead grab their attention and draw them into
the story.

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Basic structure of a news story
Lead
Body of Story
Conclusion
(feature stories)

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NEWS: 5 Ws (and an H)
 Who, What, When, Where Why and How

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Keep It Simple
 Write it so your grandmother or a 12-
year-old can understand it
 Avoid acronyms, jargon and technical
terms whenever possible

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Examples
 See Handouts
 Check out Our Web Releases at:
http://www.newsdesk.umd.edu/

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Summary
 Start with your audiences in mind
– The media AND the people you want to reach
through the media
 It‟s gotta be news
 Put the „good stuff‟ first
 Questions?