Free Publicity: A TV Reporter Shares the Secrets of Getting Covered on the News

by Jeff Crilley

Finally, a working journalist shares the secrets of getting covered on the news! Whether you have a non-profit agency, whether you're a small business owner, an individual who wants coverage, or a PR... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0972647406
• ISBN13: 9780972647403
• Release Date: December 2002
• Publisher: Brown Books
• Length: 117 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 5.5" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

Get On Reporter's Contact List

For those who wondered why their story, compelling though it might be, didn't make the media, read this book. This is a truly hilarious book about how to get free publicity, and how to own the air waves. Did you know that the days between Christmas and New Years is the best time to get your free publicity in any and all media sources? And on government holidays have you chosen to wait until everyone's back in town to attempt to get more business? If your answer is "yes," you have missed out on fifty-percent of the potential media coverage available. And, if you are planning to call a reporter, have you mastered what schoozing that they expect (complement, succinct request, succinct visual comparison, and visual descriptions that support your zinger)? Read this book to: 1. Get free coverage on a what matters to you; 2. Get journalists beating a path to your door; 3. Write press releases that become compelling stories; 4. Turn the tough interview questions into your opportunity to shine; 5. Master the art of the seven-second sound bite; 6. Know at what time which type of media coverage is best for what you would like free publicity on; and, 7. Turn a reporter's question into gracefully changing the subject to what's on your agenda. The most hilarious point that Jeff Crilley makes in "Free Publicity" is an example of when someone, who is now very famous, called into the tv station,to promote his book. While the news editor was trying to get this person to talk about other things, this caller did not "come up for air." He endlessly talked about what he wanted to talk about. The news editor put the phone down, to get something from another room. And when the news editor returned to pick up the phone, this caller was still talking about his book. The end result was that the caller was a water cooler topic of conversation at the tv station. And he was never invited to appear on any of their shows, despite his celebrity status, then or now. Like any other communication environment, developing rapport with journalists means knowing and honoring their communication rules. I really enjoyed reading this book, because there was a nice balance of facts, humor, and something different from the many communication books that I've read.

A Fun Romp through the World of Free Publicity

OK, I'll admit it. I bought this book only because Jeff Crilley appears on our local TV. And he's cute and competent and fun. I never gave much thought to the skill that lies behind the fun, good-natured reporting. And I never expected a book packed with so much useful information. There's craft behind the fun, and craft to getting reporters' attention. Craft to planning events, craft to developing a killer story. Ahhhhh, I get it! And you should get it too if you need a bit of a boost getting the very best kind of publicity -- free, of course! Phyllis Staff, Ph.D. author, "How to Find Great Senior Housing" and "128 Ways to Prevent Alzheimer's and Other Dementias"

Reporting on the Reporter

It would behoove anyone who has responsibility for building an organization to read this wonderfully helpful and humorous book to pick up tips for getting just what the title promises. Whether one has a commercial business, a non-profit or your just part of an association trying to acomplish simple neighborhood objective, Jeff Crilley's recipe for free press coverage is the ticket to getting your business recognized. The book doesn't tell you everything, but neither is it encyclopedic in length. It is a quick read, full of anecdotal support to show you approaches to getting the media to give you some free advertising when you most need it. The last 30 of the book's 114 pages provides one with TV station web site addresses for stations all around the country. And while most readers may not need national publicity, there is certainly enough meat there to get you started on your quest for your free publicity, one city at a time, no matter where you are right now.

Great perspective from the receiving end of releases

Writing attention-getting releases isn't about lying, but about putting a creative twist on the truth. This book is unique in that it's written by a person who is typically on the receiving end of the releases instead of someone who has spent years writing and submitting them. I'm more interested in what the recipient wants than what the person who has written a ton of them thinks they want. Crilley is a TV news reporter in Dallas who shares his experiences in book that takes about an hour to read because it's fast-paced, grabs your attention and keeps it. That's how good these stories are and why they got Crilley's attention. Each chapter provides a few key points and those points are reiterated at the end of the chapter for easy referencing. The author is on target when he suggests honesty even when things are bad. If Clinton had come clean from the start of it, the whole scandal involving him and "that woman" might not have been the big deal that it came to be. The media is going to keep nibbling until it gets what it wants or arrives at the truth. Within moments of reading the book, ideas started floating in my head on how to bring more attention to a few things needing spotlight. This simple book has it all: it's fast, easy, useful, and humorous.

FORGO ALL OTHERS BOOKS-THIS ADVICE WORKS INSTANTLY

This is an instantly effective book and a quick read!Two weeks after implementing Jeff's advice I learned from FREE PUBLICITY I was on the local news- within three months I had been on statewide radio and television eight times and one of my news items got picked up by CNN and FOX News! I have made some wonderful friends and network pals all over the media and now am "considered a trusted news source" for many local, national and international news outlets! Now, in the fourth month of using FREE PUBLICITY as my advisor, I have diversified my focus and landed a guest spot on a radio show syndicated on 51 radio stations across the country!This book works AS YOU READ AND IMPLEMENT THE ADVICE! Instantly!If you have a company, a special talent, a non-profit, are an actor, a dancer, politician, ANYONE who desires visibility- this book should be your FREE PUBLICITY bible!Get one for all your department heads or to encourage your talented whiz kids success!But BE READY TO SUCCEED because the advice contained within FREE PUBLICITY really works!And Fast!