Each semester for the past two years, I’ve been pulling together a list of resources for my media relations students, operating on the principle that to work with the media, you have to know and understand the media. You have to understand not just how journalists do their jobs, but also what financial pressures exist in their newsrooms and corporate headquarters. You have to track the trends as closely as they do, so that you can help them do their jobs despite the fact that their jobs are changing almost monthly.
As we kick off the new year with no indication the pace of change is slowing, I’m sharing my list of resources in the hopes you’ll find something new and helpful as you begin your year of working with the media. And a request – my class starts next week, so if you have great resources I’ve overlooked, please send them along!
Websites
Newsletters
Pew Research Center on Journalism & Media
Email Services
Journalists
Jim Rutenberg, the New York Times’ media critic
Erik Wemple, the Washington Post’s media critic
Podcasts
The Daily (often provides insight into how major New York Times stories/interviews are done)
The Kicker from Columbia Journalism Review
Reliable Sources with Brian Stelter