How to write a news release worthy of Headline News

Three tips from a former CNN news anchor

Lynne Russell has some kick-ass tips for writers who want their news releases to be read.

The former anchor of CNN Headline News and the author of How to Win Friends, Kick Ass and Influence People recently shared those tips with students in a public relations writing class at Centennial College.

When you write a news release, you’re “telling people what’s going on in their world,” she told the students. She proceeded to share three tips on how to get journalists and assignment editors to share your story with the world.

1. Make it short. “The key word for news releases is ‘short’,” she said. “Every story has one point,” not two or three or four. A news release that runs to two pages isn’t going to be read, she said. Russell also pointed out that being concise and not using a single unnecessary word is actually where the work gets hard. “The shorter your piece, the more difficult it is to write,” she said, “and the better it will be as a result.”

2. Respect your audience. “Try to use words that people know,” she advised. Moreover, to make sure your story is clear you have to be the first person to read it. “If it does not make sense to you, it’s not going to make sense to your readers, that’s for sure,” she said. “Put yourself in their position,” Russell reminded the students.

3. Tell a story. “Everything you put on paper is telling a story,” said Russell. Thousands of years ago Aristotle wrote that a good tragedy has a beginning, a middle and an end, and apparently that’s true of news releases as well, according to Russell. A strong lead, a concise body, and a conclusion that sums it all up or is a call to action are essential parts of every good story and news release. And to make it even easier to read, “make it conversational,” Russell concluded.

Russell’s three basic tips of writing a news release were very well received by her audience.

And why not? As the evening anchor of Headline News for more than a decade, she was the target of countless news releases. And, as a former jail guard with two black belts in Choi Kwang Do, she gets right to the point.

It made for a kick-ass class in PR writing at Centennial College.

By Roger Couvrette, CC&PR Student, Class of 2011