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To pitch a journalist, send one personal email under 200 words to a reporter who covered your topic in the last few months.
Put the news in the subject line and back it with one fact.
Offer a source the reporter can call, sign with a real name and follow up once.
Nearly nine in ten reporters ignore pitches outside their beat, so the choice of reporter matters as much as the words.
Pitching is one step on the way to press coverage.
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Say who did what, and why it matters now. If it takes two sentences, tighten it.
One number or a first. Original data works best, and 40% of journalists told Muck Rack they value it.
The bylines on the last three stories about your topic, usually 10 to 30 names. See the media list guide.
Two recent articles per reporter, and one line on why your story fits their work.
Use the template below, under 200 words, news in the first line.
Usually data and a customer who agreed to talk. A press kit holds most of it.
From a real mailbox, with a first line written for that person. No mail merge.
Three to five working days later, with something new. Then stop.
Copy and send
Copy the template, fill every bracket and cut any line you cannot fill honestly.
Subject line. [The news in plain words, with one number in it] Hi [first name], You wrote about [their recent story and when it ran]. [One sentence on why this is relevant to them.] [The news in one sentence. Who did what, and when.] [One fact or data point that makes it more than a claim.] [What you can offer, such as a customer on the record or early access.] [Person] is free to talk on [days]. Happy to send [the one asset they need]. [Your name] [Role, company, phone]
The six parts, in order. A subject line with one specific detail, 6 to 12 words. One opening line on why this reporter. The news in one sentence. One fact as proof. The offer. A real name with a phone number.
Read the table as a brief. A short pitch on the reporter's beat, written by a person, with data and a source behind it.
Beat fit decides it. A reporter who covers payments does not cover payroll software, even at the same outlet.
Check four things before a name goes on the list; the full method is in the media list guide.
The subject decides whether the rest gets read. Three formulas cover most stories, with illustrative lines for fictional companies.
Leave out hype words and exclamation marks.
What happened and the figure that makes it matter. Lviv school canteens cut food waste by a third in one term.
Where, and why it is the first of its kind. First hydrogen bus depot in Moravia opens to the public on Friday.
What you can give, tied to their story this week. Fleet manager on record about winter fuel costs, free Thursday.
More subject lines, grouped by story type, sit in the media pitch examples guide.
The first version is typical of what reporters delete. The rewrite targets a transport reporter who covered delivery costs in October.
Both are for a fictional company.
Copy and send
An embargo means a reporter gets the news early and publishes at a set moment, with the time zone spelled out.
Offer it only to reporters you trust, and get agreement before sending details. An exclusive goes to one outlet first and alone.
Say so in the first line and give them a day or two to decide.
The first email asks for agreement and does not reveal the news.
Subject line. Embargo offer, [topic in plain words], [date] Hi [first name], We have news on [topic] going public on [date, time, time zone]. Tell me if you would like it early, under embargo until then. If you agree, I will send the details and a call slot with [person]. [Your name]
Subject line. Embargoed until [date, time, time zone]. [The news in plain words] Hi [first name], Thank you for agreeing to the embargo until [date, time, time zone]. [The news in one sentence.] [One fact.] I can set up a call with [person] before the embargo lifts. [Your name]
After a yes, send the second.
Early in their working day by their own clock, well before deadline.
For a dated event, send two to five days ahead with an embargo; the afternoon before is too late.
Skip days of big scheduled news on their beat, such as a central bank decision for a finance reporter.
Monthly and trade titles plan weeks or months ahead, so seasonal stories go to them early.
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Use AI to research, not to write. On Featured, human pitches were picked about three times as often as AI ones.
Featured also found that accounts it later banned were 3.6 times more likely to have sent an AI pitch. A model can find a number in your files or summarise a reporter's last stories. The email itself should be yours.
Copy and send
Wait three to five working days, then send one short note in the same thread with something new, such as a fresh number or a second customer.
Subject line. [New fact since the first email, in plain words] Hi [first name], One new detail since last week. [The new fact.] [Person] can still talk on [day]. [Data or photos] are ready if useful. [Your name]
If there is still no answer, let it go. Pitch a new story later. Silence usually means the timing or the angle was wrong.
Answer within the hour if you can. A reply means the reporter is writing now, and the first useful source wins the quote.
Data comes with one line on the method.
Do not ask to approve the article.
Ask for corrections only if a fact is wrong.
Every pitch goes to someone who wrote on your topic in the last 90 days, with the story that proves it.
Research and timing are ours. The pitch is written and signed by a human, never sent in bulk.
If a reporter is silent, they get one short note with a new fact, then we move on to the next story.
Illustrative example, not a client result
Copy and send
Subject line. Embargoed until [date, time, time zone]. [The news in plain words] Hi [first name], Following our call, here are the details under the embargo we agreed, until [date, time, time zone]. The announcement goes public on [date]. [The news in one sentence.] [One fact.] I can set up a call with [person] before the embargo lifts. [Your name]
Anastasiia Bratkova
Chief Brand, Marketing & Communications Officer, RSE
Signs every pitch
Questions
Under 200 words. 69% of journalists said they prefer it that way in Muck Rack's State of Journalism 2026.
A subject line with the news, one line on why this reporter, the news in one sentence, one fact as proof, an offer such as a source on the record, and your name with a phone number. The before and after rewrite in this guide comes to about 120 words.
For research, yes. For the pitch itself, no. 53% of journalists object to AI-written pitches, and AI pitches on Featured were picked about 1 in 10 times against 1 in 3 for human ones.
Early in their working day and well before deadline. For a dated event, send a few days ahead under embargo.
Once, three to five working days after the pitch, with something new. More than that damages the relationship.
Who, what, when, where and why. A pitch that answers all five in its first two sentences is ready to send.
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Next step
A senior PR expert sends it within one business day, with a story angle for your company.
