http://www.artbizblog.com/2006/04/be-a-friend-to-the-media.html for the Business of Being an Artist Fri, 10 Feb 2012 01:18:13 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 http://www.artbizblog.com/2006/04/be-a-friend-to-the-media.html/comment-page-1#comment-1484 Walter Hawn Fri, 14 Apr 2006 21:12:20 +0000 http://www.artbizblog.com/2006/04/be-a-friend-to-the-media.html#comment-1484 As a media guy for over 30 years, I'd like to comment on the "feed their egos" thing. Our egos, in the news biz, are just fine. Mine is sleek and svelte, and needs no fattening. If I perceive that you are even coming close to "feeding my ego," you lose. Anything beyond such polite acknowledgments as, "I hear you on the radio" or "I read your stuff" will move you into *negative* territory. Only a newbie (or maybe a network anchor) will be upset if you don't even mention it. Remember this secret about the news biz: There is a LOT of news out there. Yours is a very small part of it. You need the media *much* more than the media needs you. Flashy stuff doesn't work. Ego-strokes don't work. A plain, simple, normal sized sheet of paper, with well organised contact information, a compelling reason to follow up, and decent background info, is what works. Regards, Walter Hawn KTWO Radio News As a media guy for over 30 years, I’d like to comment on the “feed their egos” thing. Our egos, in the news biz, are just fine. Mine is sleek and svelte, and needs no fattening. If I perceive that you are even coming close to “feeding my ego,” you lose. Anything beyond such polite acknowledgments as, “I hear you on the radio” or “I read your stuff” will move you into *negative* territory. Only a newbie (or maybe a network anchor) will be upset if you don’t even mention it. Remember this secret about the news biz: There is a LOT of news out there. Yours is a very small part of it. You need the media *much* more than the media needs you. Flashy stuff doesn’t work. Ego-strokes don’t work. A plain, simple, normal sized sheet of paper, with well organised contact information, a compelling reason to follow up, and decent background info, is what works. Regards, Walter Hawn KTWO Radio News

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