The Good Pitching Guide for PRs

Bad news first: there is no one set of rules for successful pitching into the UK media.

The good news: most journalists are very open and upfront about the kind of pitches they are interested in receiving from PRs.

Here are seven very specific requests, tips and ‘more please’s from journalists featured in our Vuelio Media Bulletin – take note on how to give good pitch to journalists writing about general lifestyle topics, science, health, sport, disability, inequality, psychology and more.

How to pitch to Angela Malin, editor-in-chief of About Time Magazine and They Started It podcaster

‘Email me! Always. With a succinct subject line. Please don’t call me, it freaks me out. And only WhatsApp in an emergency (is there ever really an emergency in lifestyle journalism?).’

Read the full interview with Angelica on her topics of interest and what went into her book ‘Unattached: Essays on Singlehood’.

Punteha van Terheyden, Lacuna Voices editor and freelance journalist

‘Please email me directly. And if I’m not on your subscriber list for real life case studies and press releases (women’s interest, health, legal, relationships, etc.), please add me! You can see my portfolio of articles on my website.’

Read the full interview for even more pitching tips from Punteha, author of ‘The 10-Point Pitching Plan’.

Lydia Wilkins, freelance journalist and podcaster with Conscious Being magazine

‘The best way to get in touch with a story or other opportunities is to not email me, but to wait for specific callouts that I post on Twitter.

‘My inbox is… messy at the best of times, and things get lost, technology being technology. Twitter means I can reply as quickly as I can.’

Read the full interview for Lydia’s thoughts on diversity in journalism and inclusivity in storytelling as well as information on her book ‘The Autism Friendly Cook Book’.

Henry Gee, Nature’s senior editor, biology

‘You can contact me through my book website. My agent is Jill Grinberg at Jill Grinberg Literary Management – you can email her through the same web page.’

Read the full interview for more on Henry’s experiences throughout his 30 years in science publishing as well as information on his book ‘A (Very) Short History of Life on Earth’.

Dr Josephine Perry, Cycling Weekly features writer, freelance journalist and sports and performance psychologist

‘I love getting story ideas or great case studies. I’m always looking for interesting things happening in sport, high performance or psychology. Any books on high performance or those written by athletes are great to receive for my website review section. Email me, or find me tweeting (far too much) @josephineperry.’

Read the full interview for advice on being successful in all your endeavours (including pitching to the media) as Dr Josephine talks about her book ‘The Ten Pillars of Success: Secret Strategies of High Achievers’.

Saba Salman, Community Living editor and freelance journalist

‘I’m interested in reporting the experiences and talking to people we rarely hear from, like someone who has a profound disability, or their family, or health and care support staff. I’m also interested in covering the stories of people for whom the cost-of-living might be harsher because they face multiple barriers or disadvantage, for example, due to race and disability.’

Read the full interview to find out more about Saba’s reporting of the cost-of-living crisis and disability issues for outlets including The Guardian, The Independent and Byline Times.

Sophie Smith Galer, senior news reporter for VICE

‘I’ll be honest – it is very rare that my stories come from press releases. But if you have something connected to gender violence, health misinformation, online extremism or the climate crisis and it’s about something going on in Europe, the Middle East or Africa you can email me.’

Read the full interview for how Sophia utilises TikTok as a reporting and sourcing tool and her book ‘Losing It: Sex Education for the 21st Century’.

Find out more about all of these journalists with the Vuelio Media Database and keep up with movements across the UK media by signing up to the twice-weekly Media Bulletin for PRs and journalists.

Even more tips on pitching to the UK media can be found in our white paper ‘How to Pitch to Journalists’ – download it here.