Cute headlines on news releases. Cute lead paragraphs. Cute story
pitches.
It’s enough to make a reporter gag. Unless, of course, they crave
cute. But how do you ever know?
When pitching a story or sending a news release, err on the side
of caution. Don’t send anything that smacks of cute to reporters
who usually cover hard news stories.
But here are 4 instances when cute often works:
–The story about the municipal road worker who rescues 6 ducklings from a sewer grate is the perfect “final story”on the 11 o’clock news. TV news needs a warm and fuzzy wrap-up to offset all the other depressing stories. Pay attention to what kinds of cute stuff they’re using at the end. Then keep your eyes open for opportunities.
–Anything about pets. The media love pet stories, from pets in the workplace to using pets for therapy, to expensive and outlandish ways that people pamper their pets.
–Many business journals run short, light news items on Page 2. But please don’t start your pitch with, “I have a really cute story you might like…” Remember, these reporters write about the serious topic of business. (See “How to Use Business Journals to Tell Your Story.”)
–In small-town weeklies and local shoppers. Local news is their bread and butter and cute photos and other items that would never find their way into big metro papers often end up here.