In November of 1971, an unidentified man hijacked a commercial airliner somewhere between Seattle and Portland, Oregon. We now know him only by his sobriquet… D.B. Cooper. Cooper escaped mid-flight with over $200,000, and was never found again. You can read all about him right here.
For hijacking a plane and getting away with it, D.B. Cooper was worldwide front-page news for months.
Did you know that YOU can get that same kind of attention from the media using a simple yet powerful technique called newsjacking? (Don’t worry, you won’t have to break federal air transport laws either.)
What IS Newsjacking?
David Meerman Scott, the father of modern newsjacking, defines it thus…
It’s the process by which you inject your own ideas into a breaking news story as it’s happening (in real time) in order to generate media coverage for yourself or your business.
And if I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a million times… You’re not just an actor, you’re a small business owner. You own the business of YOU. And your business needs to market itself.
Later on, we’ll discuss how YOU can newsjack to create a frenzy of media coverage focused on you as an actor. But first, let’s take a tip from the pros…
Famous Newsjackers
• Rick Perry: Tricky Ricky made a splash in August of 2011 when he announced his run for the presidency on the very same day that Michelle Bachmann won the Iowa Straw Poll, effectively stealing the majority of her media coverage.
• TIO Insurance: In November of 2011, President Obama traveled to the rugged Northern Territory in Australia, where he was presented with a gift from a local insurance company.
What was the gift? A free life insurance policy in case the president was eaten by a crocodile.
Yes, it sounds ridiculous. And it is. But their little gambit earned them almost 5,000 mainstream media news stories. And how long did it take to write up the policy? Maybe an hour. That’s the power of newsjacking.
And lastly, we examine the man who practically invented the sport…
• Larry Flynt: The king of subversive marketing stunts…
In June of 2011, Congressman Anthony Weiner resigned from office after admitting to a sexting scandal. Flynt was quick to offer Weiner a job with the internet division of Hustler, a 20% raise, and better benefits. The marketing ploy garnered Flynt hundreds of news articles nationwide.
Flynt also recently offered a million dollars to anyone who could prove they had an illicit sexual relationship with aforementioned Texas governor Rick Perry.
“Yes, this was a publicity gimmick. And I thank God you all fell for it.” -Larry Flynt
Why Speed is Important
We live in an age where information travels faster than the speed of light. In the 24-hour news cycle, stories are breaking second by second. And journalists are acutely aware of this reality. (Haven’t you ever seen His Girl Friday?)
So when news is breaking, reporters need original content — and FAST. They cut corners, looking for a unique angle to a story so they can differentiate themselves from the pack.
That’s where you come in. Ready to learn the ropes…?
How to Newsjack – A Guide for Actors
1. Put your finger on the pulse.
You’ve got to know about industry news the very moment that it happens. The best way to accomplish this is by tracking specific journalists at publications like Backstage, Variety, Playbill, IndieWire, and The Wrap. Target journalists that are younger, and more likely to use social media.
And don’t forget your local media outlets as well: your community newspaper, blogs about the city’s nightlife, popular performance venues in the area, etc.
The best way to track specific journalists is using Twitter. Find their username and follow them. And don’t be afraid to tweet at them.
Also keep an eye on established hashtags, and use them to discover breaking stories.
2. Work out your angle. And fast.
Remember when I told you that time is of the essence? Step 2 is where you’ll feel the crunch. You need to identify how you are related to a breaking news story, and why your reporter should care.
Maybe you have additional information about it, maybe you can use humor, or maybe you can offer something for free. Every attempted newsjack requires a different angle.
3. Pull the trigger.
Write a blog post, tweet out loud (using the established hashtag), directly contact one of your journalists, or place a paper maché sculpture in the middle of Times Square. Whatever gets you and your business some attention.
You don’t have to be as big as Larry Flynt if you wanna newsjack. But you do need to be fast, smart, and extremely creative.
Help a Reporter Out
Here’s a great resource for actors who are looking to newsjack. Peter Shankman runs a free service called HARO (Help a Reporter Out). It’s an email that arrives to your inbox three times a day: one in the morning, one at lunch, and one in the evening.
Each email contains 15 to 20 news stories that haven’t been published yet. Journalists who are looking for information, an interview, or a sound byte need YOU to help finish their article. Because it’s free, I highly suggest you subscribe.
It’s a shame that D.B. Cooper never came forward after his infamous swan-dive into the Great Northwest. He could’ve made a lot more than $200,000…
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