Deadline

A deadline is the day and time when a media release or other contact must be in to newsrooms if the story is to have a chance to be aired or printed on that news day. Media correspondents operate in news cycles. They work stories for a specific period of time, within one day or over several days. They have deadlines that allow them to properly prepare a story in time to go to press or go on the air.

A deadline is the time when a newspaper or a station can no longer receive a story for a specific printing or broadcast. A newspaper typically has one deadline for each day's printing. Radio might have several deadlines for the various news segments. Most television stations have news deadlines for morning, noon, evening, and nightly news. Deadlines can correspond to the kind of audience the organization is trying to reach—drive time or evening news, for instance. News television stations such as CNN may have hourly news deadlines.

Deadlines are one of the hard realities in the news and public relations businesses. Because of the preparation times that are required to gather news details and prepare stories for print and airing, news departments establish deadlines. Public relations practitioners must know the deadlines for each news venue where they would like to have a story appear.

In preparation for getting reporters' attention to their media releases, practitioners may need a campaign plan that includes set schedules. Part of setting each schedule is to backtime. Backtiming means that practitioners set a schedule starting from the date a campaign must be executed and scheduling backward to set the times when each element of the campaign must be started to meet the deadlines of the various reporters whose attention they seek.

A lot of preparation can be wasted if at some crucial moment the practitioners fail to have the news information to the reporters within the limits of their deadlines. Stories that are pitched too soon may be forgotten by the date of the event. Releases that reach reporters after the deadline will necessarily fail to be printed or aired as part of the regular news.

Because of the combination of campaign schedules and media deadlines, any observant reader, listener, or viewer can predict certain events by what they see happening. For instance, it is not a matter of accident or coincidence that a major star appears on early-morning or late-night talk shows just days before a release of a movie or CD featuring the artist. All of that “news” is carefully timed to meet deadlines and campaign schedules. It is intended to create interest, or buzz, about the movie or CD and enhance sales.

Thus, deadlines affect when the practitioner needs to get information to the reporters in time to pitch an event. Another variation of this theme can become a reality during crisis response. If something newsworthy happens, reporters are likely to contact a company spokesperson, for instance, seeking comment. If the comment comes too late, the story is likely to air or be printed without the company's side of the story being included. Even worse might be the inclusion of one of the following statements by reporters: “The company did not respond to our inquiries by air time” or “This reporter tried repeatedly to contact the company without success.” Such comments indict the company, make it seem guilty, and damage its reputation or image. Experienced practitioners provide recorded telephone message information that allows reporters to find them, perhaps through a [Page 240]pager, at virtually any hour of the day. They know that they must be available as needed to meet reporters' deadlines for a working story, especially one concerning a crisis.

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