Press Release
Synopsis: According to Bovée and Thill (2020), a press or news release is “a brief written summary of company news and events such as a factory opening or a new-product launch” (p. 383).
Traits
Short-range business document
1-2 pp.
Follows Associated Press writing style to cater to news media folks.
Written with the stakeholders in mind and how the announcement will benefit them (You View, Positive Phrasing).
Purpose
To announce changes to company, management, new products, important opportunities, etc., to a specific yet general audience of interested individuals; caters to news media, including TV and radio broadcasters, newspapers, and magazines, with hopes that these little announcements will be interesting enough to be promoted by the news media (Bovée & Thill, 2020).
Audience
External stakeholders, community partners, invested or interested populations (i.e., brand communities, a very concrete example would be Bellevue University Alumni and even Bellevue, Nebraska, where the University resides)
Guidelines to Keep in Mind
News media has changed somewhat in today’s society, and press releases are the older, more formal way to get a sales pitch out to the larger community. Today, one might see smaller bites of information moving out across social media. For instance, Bovée and Thill (2020) mention “Tweetables” as prepared tweets that can be posted on behalf of a company or organization (p. 383). More on the ways that social media has affected direct-to-consumer news releases can be found in Bovée and Thill.
Examples
Federal Government Press Release
Brown, C. (Principle Deputy Spokesperson). (2020, December 17). The United States condemns the kidnapping of students in Kankara, Nigeria [Press release]. U.S. Department of State. https://www.state.gov/the-united-states-condemns-the-kidnapping-of-students-in-kankara-nigeria/
Non-profit Higher Education Press Release
Bellevue University Newsroom. (2020, December 17). Winter commencement canceled due to Covid-19 pandemic [Press release]. https://news.bellevue.edu/winter-commencement-canceled-due-to-covid-19-pandemic/
Reference
Bovée, C. L., & Thill, J. V. (2020). Business in action (9th ed.). Pearson.