Media spotlight is a way to communicate your mission and values through a story. This is a good opportunity to reach potential donors and volunteers. It’s important that you take the time to find a compelling story and make sure it is evergreen (not timely like an event recap or how-to) so that readers can see themselves as part of your organization over the long term.
Oftentimes media spotlight articles have a strong human interest angle and include plenty of back story, details, and narratives that go beyond what is typically found in news stories. They may also be investigative pieces that uncover and expose wrongdoings or cliched themes in mainstream media coverage of specific topics and communities.
One of the best ways to ensure that your media pitch gets a response is to personalize it and tailor it to a journalist’s interests, past work, or the needs of their publication. This demonstrates that you understand their audience and helps set your pitch apart from the others they receive.
It’s no secret that the media lives off of news pegs, trending topics, and new research. Your chance of getting a response to your media pitch is significantly higher if you can use these as hooks for your story.
The semi-annual Indigenous Journalists Association Media Spotlight Report is an excellent resource to identify recurring, negative themes and stereotypes in mainstream media coverage of Aboriginal peoples. The Report analyzes coverage from several major outlets and compares them over a defined period of time.