A Candid Conversation with a Journalist (Part 4) – PR Pros, Spin, and the Truth
09.10.2025 – One of the most poignant questions I asked Kingsport Times-News Editor Carol Broyles during my July interview with her was her honest opinion of PR pros. The sad reality of the PR industry and the PR pros that work in it is that it has a tarnished image in the eyes of some. That’s because back in the day, publicists would do ANYTHING (lie, twist the truth, etc.) to get the company they were representing in the news. These PR practitioners were given the name “flacks” — a very offensive term for PR pros. Imagine that: PR has bad PR. Yikes. (Who do you hire to fix THAT??) But every industry has bad apples. That’s just how it goes.
A Candid Conversation with a Journalist (Part 3) – Steps to Secure Local Coverage
09.03.2025 – Getting into the paper isn’t luck — it’s knowing the steps that make it easier for an editor to say yes. In my continued conversation with Kingsport Times News Content Editor Carol Broyles, she laid out a clear roadmap for how businesses can get covered, from making the first call to submitting the right photo format. And yes — your grand opening really does count as news.