So instead of adding another guess-based checklist to the pile, we brought working journalists together and asked them to describe how their jobs actually function – how they decide which pitches to open, who they call for comment under deadline pressure, and why otherwise solid ideas still miss.

Those conversations happened across two episodes of Cracking the Comms Code, and what emerged wasn’t etiquette advice. It was operational truth – the parts of reporting life that rarely make it into pitching guidance.

Below are the most revealing insights, drawn directly from the journalists themselves.

American media is shallow. Trade media is not.

One thing many public relations professionals forget is that spray-and-pray didn’t work when journalists were plentiful. Today, it’ll get you blocked, because trade reporters aren’t writing for the general public. Their audiences are looking for, to quote Washington Technology senior staff reporter Ross Wilkers, “something they didn’t already know about their own space.”

Anastassia Gliadkovsk, senior writer at Fierce Healthcare, put it a different way: “We’re not in an era where sending a pitch to a hundred reporters and hoping it sticks is practical anymore.”

Reporters move fast, juggle multiple deadlines, and scan for anything that helps them work more efficiently. Over time, they remember which pitches advance a story and which create extra work. That memory carries forward into being trusted for the former… and blocked with the latter.

If you forget that, your pitch is toast. Reframing headlines or offering general commentary does not move an industry forward. Trades reward deep dives into niche issues that make an impact.

Reliability wins the day

Ideas matter, but execution matters more – especially when big news breaks.

Barnini Chakraborty, senior investigations reporter at the Washington Examiner, made the stakes clear: “Someone can bring strong ideas and interesting sources, but if they can’t deliver when it matters, they stop being reliable.”

The same issue arises when trying to fake personalization. Quin Hillier, a columnist for Louisiana newspapers, warned: “When something is clearly pretending to be personal but isn’t, that’s when it becomes counterproductive. After a few of those, I block the sender.”

You have to be especially on point for cold pitches, fitting the stories reporters are actively working on or adding something new to a core beat.

Kerra Bolton, an independent journalist working with GoBankingRates, explained it plainly: “When I ask specific questions, the most helpful responses answer only what I asked – nothing extra.”

Additional framing, alternate angles, or scheduling steps slow things down. In fast-turnaround environments, that friction often costs the opportunity – and even a genuinely relevant pitch may never reach the inbox again. Because media relationships are built on real stories that matter

Trade reporters see trends before the mainstream

One of the quieter but more revealing moments came from how reporters described their role relative to national media. 

Joanna Fantozzi, senior editor at Nation’s Restaurant News, pointed to restaurant trends coverage at The New York Times as being a year or more behind she and her industry colleagues. “In B2B, we tend to understand trends and implications ahead of larger mainstream outlets.” 

What this means for PR professionals is that you need to be ahead of the game. Trade media is looking not for what’s already happened – but for what’s coming next. Do it long enough, and your clients and principals may become the next source for national dailies thanks to the trades. 

What most pitching advice gets wrong

These conversations made one thing clear: pitching doesn’t fail because tactics are bad. It fails because people misunderstand how reporters actually work.

Reporters don’t evaluate pitches in isolation. Over time, they form short, practical lists of people who make their jobs easier. These are PR pros who understand the audience, deliver when they commit, and know when to take a no and move on. Those lists are small, and they’re built quietly, story by story.

Once you’re on that list, you’re no longer just another email in the inbox. Your pitch gets read differently, your timing gets more leeway, and your ideas get more consideration.

That dynamic rarely shows up in pitching advice. But it’s how tier-1 trade coverage actually gets decided.

Check out the conversations in the links below.

In short: niche press is top-tier press. And in three episodes of Cracking the Comms Code, we tackled how several types of niche media coverage drive value you can prove to even the most resistant client:

• Substack columns, podcasts, and LinkedIn, with guests Shannon Tucker and
  Annie Moore
• Local and regional media, with guests Jacqueline Policastro, Dave Levinthal, and
  Owen Caine
• Trade media, with guests Alex Dudley and Grace Williams

Why Local Media Still Matters

In July, Nieman Lab reported that one in three U.S. counties now have zero journalists. Yet the outlets and journalists that remain play critical roles in informing target audiences of what is happening in their community. Our conversation took place on Election Day and covered how to use local and regional media to spread the word about political, public affairs, and business narratives.

Each panelist brought a unique perspective. Jacqueline built two media shops before becoming Principal of Policastro Communications. Owen Caine is Assistant Vice President of Federal Legislative Affairs for the National Association of Realtors. And Dave Levinthal is a Contributing Editor at NOTUS.

Here are 4 takeaways:

1. Local media remains essential despite newsroom decline. Local outlets still shape elections, influence policy, and impact business visibility because national outlets simply aren’t able to tackle what matters most – like the school board election, a local tax issue, or when a local business makes a new hire.
2. People trust their local news because reporters live in their communities — they show up at schools, parades, and town meetings, fostering credibility that allows them to ask tougher questions and hold leaders accountable.
3. Policy and political outcomes depend on local coverage. Lawmakers and lobbyists pay close attention to what local outlets report because it reflects their constituents’ priorities. National commentary is predictable; local stories influence municipal, county, state, and federal officials.
4. Businesses benefit from local storytelling. National media won’t care if your business opens, closes, or is caught in a scandal. But your customers will. Local and regional media coverage humanizes brands, connects companies to communities, and helps prevent reputational damage by engaging buying audiences early.

Stop Chasing Vanity, Start Winning Trade Media

The trade media discussion ranged from start-ups trying to build a brand to established companies trying to save brand reputation during a crisis. Grace is SVP of Client Relations for PANBlast; Alex is Executive Vice President and Head of Crisis for MikeWorldWide.

The conversation focused heavily on how to take what PR professionals know and turn it into language clients can grasp, such as:

• There are more trade outlets than national media outlets – and they're easier to get into. This is especially important for start-ups that want to quickly create differentiation and reach investor, customer, and other stakeholders.
• Trades want deep dives into important lessons, narratives, and insights. Nerd out to build credibility and drive leads – and to create a strong foundation for credibility with Big Media journalists, editors, and producers. In a crisis, you can often protect credibility with core stakeholders by having a know and trusted spokesperson spread your narrative through trade press
• Trade media drives a ton of LLM and SEO attention and credibility

And here’s the best part of all with trades: a lot of the competition is whiffing with national media. Meanwhile, smart brands are stacking up the trade wins, creating marketing opportunities to drive more value for each placement.

The most niche of all: micro-targeting Substacks, podcasts, and LinkedIn

The final conversation tackled the most niche media of all – the importance of reaching audiences of only a few thousand important stakeholders through niche media like Substack journalists and influencers.

Here are three takeaways:

1. Proving podcasts: Smaller, niche podcasts often outperform national outlets by reaching the exact audience that matters. Shannon, a Vice President at Next PR, pointed to how a client (finally) listened to the niche strategy after it wasn’t the national media that created a direct inquiry – it was the small podcast that mattered to customers.
2. Substack: Substack isn’t just a replacement for op-eds — it’s a platform for direct influence by reaching those who have built tremendous trust with loyal, topic-specific audiences. There is an immediate authenticity with these audiences, as opposed to hoping someone reads a national byline from a reporter they’ve not heard of before.
3. LinkedIn: LinkedIn is powerful but oversaturated. Success comes from being consistent, original, and combining posts into the overall content plan. As Annie, a Senior Director at Dezenhall Resources, put it, “content is king, but distribution is queen.” That’s especially true when repurposing niche placements to reach audiences across multiple platforms – or repurposing posts to become media and newsletter opportunities.

Whether you’re tackling public policy like Annie or broader business challenges like Shannon, the core mission is the same: show clients how micro-placements create sustained influence and impact.

The Proven Perspective

Each panel drove home the single point that every client needs to know: earned media is only valuable when it drives the right outcomes for the right audience. In an era when attention is fragmented, proving value is harder – so we must be prepared to show relevance and impact with every placement.

With a tough year behind us, the PR industry is ready to game plan for a brighter, more profitable, and more successful 2025. But we’re also dealing with a lot of uncertainty, from the changing role and media types to what AI means for what we do (even as its actual impact appears to be limited).

As the annual PR predictions fly, here’s a new set to consider—including that traditional media will continue to be a brand-building powerhouse.

• 2025 will be a seller’s market for PR firms.
• Trade media will earn unexpected bang for business’ bucks.
• Regional media will still love press releases and op-eds.
• Corporations will give fewer “hot takes” and engage in strategic newsjacking.

• Most PR predictions will be wrong.

2025 Will Be a Seller’s Market for PR Firms

Communications budgets have been tight for the past three years, thanks to high inflation, business recession fears, and election-year uncertainty about which directions policies would take from 2025-2028. This has affected both agency and in-house teams.

However, there are three reasons to expect significant increases in communications spending in 2025.

First, the broader economy is going to expand. “Corporate B2B spending is flat year-over-year,” said economist Mike Feuz. “However, profitability and cash on hand are up. Combine that with further inflationary easing, lower interest rates, and increased consumer spending in the next six months, and the second half of 2025 will be exceptionally strong.”

General business confidence and cash are also likely to be boosted further by the incoming administration’s low-tax and deregulation priorities.

The second reason a wide sector of PR firms will do well in 2025 is that the federal government and virtually all states are entering new legislative cycles. An estimated $4 billion will be spent on lobbying, if historical norms are any indication.

The third and potentially most validating reason PR will likely see an expansion in 2025 is an increased appreciation by corporate executives for the communications function. This isn’t just about getting the CEO out there more; a study earlier this year showed that Chief Communications Officers are being given more strategic oversight of functions that have traditionally been siloed from comms considerations.

“The expansion of the communications scope means that the CCO now plays a key role in executive decision-making. In turn, comms teams must shift from tactical output to strategic outcomes, focusing on enterprise-wide priorities and insights with a team of subject matter experts and elevated expertise,” said Trish Nicolas, the Vice President of Corporate Communications at Verint. “This is a more expensive approach to communications, but as more companies understand the value the approach brings, more dollars will be invested in these new teams.”

In short: from the C-Suite on down, the teams that create, coordinate, and execute messaging will likely be given more budget to develop and implement holistic approaches to corporate communications.

Trade Media Will Earn Unexpected Bang for Business Bucks

The growth of influencer marketing, podcasts, and long-form text platforms like Substack and LinkedIn has convinced many communications professionals that traditional media has gone the way of the dodo.

But this market shift doesn’t mean it’s time to dance on traditional media’s grave. It means that new opportunities have opened across the globe for early-stage and mid-stage businesses that want to build a foundational PR footprint.

The fact is that news cycles start with the news. Influencers shape people’s thoughts, but their content starts in the outlets that let people know what’s happening. Getting traditional press puts brands ahead of the influencers, conveys credibility, and can lead to attention from the oft-sought influencer crowd.

Influencers also have a finite number of slots for guests and topics based on the nature of their platforms. On the other hand, trade outlets and business journals have a lot of space to fill so they can remain relevant. This means gatekeepers can’t afford to pass on as many pitches as when they were the ultimate arbiters of what gets coverage.

An additional benefit for growing brands is that there is often higher-value SEO from quality placements in traditional outlets. Podcasters often don’t post all the details on guests or provide the same backlinks to websites that help build digital footprints.

Regional Media Will Still Love News Releases and Op-Eds

Another underappreciated opportunity will be local, regional, and trade media. While many newspapers are closing, local and regional online outlets are opening weekly. These outlets have zero interest in national voices saying big things; their vested interest is helping their local communities understand what’s happening and why they should care.

Businesses, nonprofits, and individuals looking to bolster brand credibility and sales should rely heavily on traditional tools like news releases, op-eds, and interviews to drive credibility with geographic audiences. Think about the local book author, the large business that opened a new location, or the local bank offering a new service.

Yes, you’ll have to deal with sponsored opportunities and paywalls. That’s how online outlets are staying in business. But while everyone else fights to get in front of the micro-influencer on X, BlueSky, or Instagram, you’ll get coverage in outlets consumers trust…and the competition is ignoring.

Corporations Will Let Everyone Else Go for “Hot Takes”

One of the most powerful tools of PR is newsjacking. Unfortunately, this has too often resulted in “hot takes” masquerading as thought leadership. These are the reactions to some events, usually offered half-cocked with less than half of the information. Hot takes often result in the spread of false information, the delivery of unfair attacks against people and brands, and the issuance of retractions hours or days later.

I endorse “value takes,” which are thoughtful responses to trends and breaking news based on relevant data and/or experience designed to constructively shape how people move forward with those trends and news events.

My fourth prediction is that corporations, particularly those with a mature C-suite communications integration, will prioritize value takes and strategic newsjacking opportunities instead of jumping onto as many bandwagons as in the past. With narrower target audiences than ever, they’ll let everyone else give hot takes because saying the wrong thing simply isn’t worth the risks to brand credibility or the potential to empower the competition.

The evidence is not incontrovertible. But it’s a rational conclusion based upon the evidence at hand, such as:

1. Corporations continue to back out of controversial political and cultural debates. Few corporate leaders took open stances on the 2024 election, and companies are bowing out of DEI and ESG while promising to prioritize the principles related to those issues.

2. Third-party voices—paid or unpaid—have much more leeway and are often willing to say what corporations won’t. Corporations can still influence cultural and political debates through those whose brands rely on hot takes, controversial opinions, etc., without risking their brand trust.

3. Brands are narrowing their messaging to penetrate target audiences deeply and keep stakeholders engaged through owned media like newsletters and podcasts. Narrow messages have a lot of space for value takes and very little for hot takes.

Again, that doesn’t mean corporations won’t insert themselves into the news cycle. It just means they will be more careful to avoid creating unnecessary controversies.

“Newsjacking is not a PR strategy, and you don’t want to invite yourself to the wrong party,” said RealPage Senior Vice President of Communications & Creative Jennifer Bowcock. “But when you ground yourself in proactive storytelling tailored to your target audiences, you can choose wisely and cleverly how to insert yourself into the story through something as simple as a meme or as complex as a whole media campaign.”

Most PR Predictions Will Be Wrong

The likely most accurate prediction for 2025? Most PR predictions will be bland (“AI will affect the PR industry”), wrong (“news releases are dead”), or self-interested (“digital marketing is the be-all-end-all, buy my service”).

However, even the most precise prediction around national trends may not matter to the local PR practitioner whose community relies on mom-and-pop businesses. AI grew in 2024…but the wider tech market slowed down. And while inflation was “lower,” it still created higher prices that were painful enough to drive voters to back Trump.

There’s a lot of truth in what a few smart people say based on experience, data, and the ability to sift through the noise. Pay attention to those people. Ignore everyone else and rely on the data to help you provide the greatest value for your niche.

This piece was originally published by Spin Sucks.