The Fastest Way to Not Get News Coverage

One of the most common things I hear from clients goes something like this:

“We saw this event get great media coverage. We want coverage like that.”

And ironically, that mindset is often the fastest way to not get media coverage at all.

I recently saw a social media video about an event that generated a huge amount of press attention and online engagement. Almost immediately, I knew what would happen next. Organizations and businesses would see the success of that coverage and think: “Let’s do the same thing.”

The problem is that reporters usually don’t want to tell the same story twice.

Newsrooms are built around one core idea: what’s new? If a television station, newspaper, or digital outlet already covered a certain type of stunt, visual, announcement, or activation, simply recreating it is unlikely to excite them the second time around.

That’s because media coverage is not about checking a box. It’s about offering audiences something fresh, relevant, interesting, emotional, visual, or surprising.

A copied idea immediately loses one of the most important qualities that made the original story work in the first place: originality.

This happens constantly in public relations. One organization gets coverage for a creative promposal. Suddenly everyone wants to do a promposal. One nonprofit gets attention for a giant check presentation. Others rush to recreate the exact same visual. One business creates a viral surprise reveal or social media stunt, and suddenly similar versions start appearing everywhere.

But once reporters have already seen it, it no longer feels new.

That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t study successful media stories. In fact, you absolutely should. But the lesson isn’t “copy the thing.” The lesson is understanding why the story worked.

Was it emotional?
Did it create compelling visuals?
Did it involve a strong human-interest angle?
Did it connect to a larger community issue?
Did it surprise people?
Did it have urgency or impact?

Those are the questions that matter.

The organizations that consistently earn meaningful media coverage are not the ones copying someone else’s formula. They are the ones willing to think differently about their own story and how to present it in a way that feels authentic and relevant to their audience.

That’s the real challenge in PR. Not imitation, but innovation.

Sometimes the best media opportunities come from looking beyond what everyone else is doing and asking a different question entirely:
“What haven’t reporters seen yet?”

Because the media is not looking for reruns.

They’re looking for the next story.