Mention Monitoring
Part of Journalist and publication research
Keeping a media contact list accurate
Maintain journalist roles, outlets, contact routes and verification dates so stale records are checked before outreach.
Keep a media list as dated, checkable contact records. For each person or desk, the team should be able to establish the current outlet and role, the subject they cover, where the contact route came from, and whether anything needs checking before use. Correct a stale record before the next approach relies on it.
Keep the person, role and route distinct
A journalist may move while an old byline remains online. Record the person, their outlet and role, and each contact route separately. Note the source and date used to verify a work address or submission form. An old article can explain why the person was first listed; it cannot confirm their present job or address.
Keep the reason for inclusion short and factual, such as the specific subject they report on. Avoid guesses about personality or willingness to cover a brand. Mark a third-party address as supplied by that source until it has been checked for the intended use.
Record state / Next step
- Route checked
- Confirm the current pitch and any restriction before use.
- Needs recheck
- Verify the role and route.
- Role or route unclear
- Hold the old route until the change is resolved.
- Restricted
- Prevent contact within the recorded scope.
A checked route is not evidence that a message was delivered, welcomed or permitted.
Update when something changes
Review a record when the journalist changes jobs, an email bounces, the publication changes its instructions or the person corrects a detail. Keep a brief change note so another team member can see why the current value replaced the old one. A bounce calls for verification, not a guessed replacement address.
Recheck a contact when preparing to use it, especially if its last verification is old or the role may have changed. There is no fixed period after which every record becomes inaccurate. Keep contact research separate from send and reply logs; those logs answer different questions.
Keep only useful details
A list identifying journalists contains personal information. For organisations covered by the Australian Privacy Principles, the OAIC explains that reasonable steps are required to keep personal information accurate for its use and secure.
The OAIC also states that reasonable steps require destroying or de-identifying personal information when it is no longer needed for a permitted purpose, subject to exceptions. Whether those duties apply to a particular organisation needs its own assessment.
Limit access to people who maintain or use the list. Retain a restriction marker where needed to prevent unwanted re-contact. Review other stale details for removal. A public work address identifies a possible route; whether a particular message may be sent is a separate decision.
Before an approach, the usable record should answer: right person, current outlet, verified route and no unresolved restriction? If any answer is unknown, hold that record for checking.
