News Release Guidelines
News & Media Relations Overview
- The University of Arizona Health Sciences Office of Communications, as the central communication division of U of A Health Sciences, provides media relations guidance to all professional communicators in colleges, centers, departments and other units that comprise U of A Health Sciences.
- The U of A Health Sciences Office of Communications is available to help faculty and staff members promote their research and academic endeavors, including those involving students, to the media.
- The office works with college/department/center communicators to distribute news releases to media outlets that can include hundreds of print, television, radio, multimedia and science journalists.
Benefits
News releases about U of A Health Sciences research are read by legislators, policy makers, community members, donors and funding agencies, faculty and students. Achieving publicity for research and academic endeavors benefits faculty and staff members by helping them gain recognition for their important work, and it influences their chances of obtaining research funding. Much of U of A Health Sciences’ national and international publicity comes from coverage of research findings published in peer-reviewed journals.
Additionally, publicity benefits U of A Health Sciences and the university by helping maintain our public image as a leading academic medical center and a Tier 1 research institution. Because the U of A is a land-grant university, the high-quality research, academic endeavors and knowledge generated by its faculty and staff should be shared with the public, whose support and awareness of our work is essential to its continuing success.
The purpose of these guidelines is to:
- present a consistent University of Arizona Health Sciences brand to ensure journalists. immediately recognize U of A Health Sciences as the source of the news release.
- facilitate the editing/proofreading process.
- facilitate posting news releases to websites.
Planning Ahead
Providing as much lead as possible allows for ample time to develop appropriate communications. For news releases, we will work with you to generate complete, accurate and timely content that is optimized for consideration by the media. Media outlets are increasingly understaffed and hurried. Research shows that well-prepared content has a significantly greater likelihood of gaining exposure. Additionally, where appropriate, it can allow time to develop assets (images, artwork, illustrations, etc.).
First Step
If you have a news tip or story idea, start by contacting the marketing/communications director at your college/department/center. If you would like to submit an idea to us directly, please fill out our short submission form at https://uarizona.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0r2i5P23heLFwSG.
Professional Ethics
Our goal is to be transparent, honest and accurate in all our communications, in accordance with public relations industry best practices and U of A ethics expectations.
Opportunities
Tools used by the U of A Health Sciences Office of Communications include:
News releases
News releases are reserved for newsworthy items, including but not limited to published research and some events, and should be coordinated with the Health Sciences Office of Communications.
Video news releases
Occasionally, the Health Sciences Office of Communications will shoot and edit video news releases – soundbites from a relevant person and b-roll footage – to send to broadcast media.
Media pitches
Our team may choose to pitch a story to one or more reporters directly rather than issue a news release. This one-on-one contact allows us to “sell” the idea to the reporter and provide immediate feedback should the reporter have any questions.
Expert tips
When a current event coincides with a faculty member’s area of expertise, we will suggest that person as an expert to the media. If there is breaking news within your area of expertise and you are available for comment, please contact the Health Sciences Office of Communications.
Press conferences
There are times when news warrants a press conference. This method of communication is reserved for major efforts or announcements.
EurekAlert!
The Health Sciences Office of Communications subscribes to EurekAlert!, a news-release distribution platform operated by the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Owned Media
News releases and other communications coordinated with the Health Sciences Office of Communications are eligible for consideration to be shared on the following platforms: Health Sciences website; Health Sciences Impact external e-newsletter; Health Sciences Connect internal e-newsletter; Health Sciences social media accounts; UANews; UANow; Lo Que Pasa.
Media Training
Media training is available for interested faculty and staff.
The method of news sharing will be determined on a case-by-case basis at the discretion of the U of A Health Sciences Office of Communications in order to maximize publicity for an announcement or event.
Please remember that the Health Sciences Office of Communications cannot guarantee media coverage. The publication or airing of a story depends on a variety of factors, including the number of staff available at a media organization to work on a story, space in a publication or airtime, the emergence of breaking news, or a similar story that has been reported recently.
News Release Guidelines
News releases are a specific type of content reserved for newsworthy happenings, including but not limited to:
Published Research
- Peer-reviewed research in high-impact journals is prioritized.
- A U of A Health Sciences researcher must be the first, senior or corresponding author.
- Letters to the editor, perspectives, etc., are generally not considered for news releases. (Please contact the Health Sciences Office of Communications as there may be other ways to promote these items.)
- Research should be interesting to a lay audience – no “inside baseball” science.
- Journalists are usually interested in studies that have some relevance to readers, their health and their lives; to society and modern problems; or are findings that inspire the common person.
Grant/Gift Announcements
- $1M minimum; smaller amounts considered on a case-by-case basis if they are strategic.
- Grants of $5M or more are eligible for a president’s quote.
- Gift announcements of $1M or more are handled through the University of Arizona Foundation.
Events (media advisories)
- Event must be open to the general public.
- No continuing education events. (Please contact the Health Sciences Office of Communications as there may be other ways to promote these events.)
- No clinical trial recruitment. (Please contact the Health Sciences Office of Communications as there may be other ways to reach potential study participants.)
Please be aware, announcements about new grants, faculty appointments and awards rarely get more coverage other than brief mentions in local newspapers. Use news releases sparingly. There are many other ways to communicate information that we want to share but does not rise to the level of “news.”
All news releases (as well as other materials, publications, etc.) that go out through the U of A Health Sciences Office of Communications must be signed off by the AVP for Communications, Rachel Reinhardt.
‘Old News’
If a story has already been published, including online and on any U of A website, or an event already has occurred, its likelihood of being covered by the media is significantly reduced; therefore, the office will not issue a news release.
Timeline
Requests for news releases should be made to the Health Sciences Office of Communications at the time of a paper’s acceptance by a journal or prior to the occurrence of a newsworthy event. Remember, journals often publish papers online well in advance of the print date – and without notifying the authors – so notification at the time of acceptance versus the time of print publication is critical.