Fifth Ring proudly sponsored the July PRSA Houston Energy Media Mixer that brought together five key Houston energy media and more than 50 people from various energy companies. http://www.prsahouston.org/

Here’s who attended on the reporter side:

• Deon Daugherty, Houston Business Journal
• David Cohen, World Oil
• Judy Murray, Hart’s E&P 
• Linda Hsieh, Drilling Contractor 
• Greg Miller, Bisnow 

As PR professionals it is important to understand what our publication targets look for and tailor an appropriate pitch. Attendees were able to get an insider’s look on how to do this more appropriately.

Do you ever wonder how to best pitch a publication? Well the editors told us! Here’s what they had to say.

• World Oil announced its 2012 editorial calendar will be available online in September and that stories should be pitched three months in advance.
• The HBJ is printed weekly, specifying Mondays are best for interviews while Thursdays and Fridays are best for pitching stories. HBJ looks at company blog posts for potential stories, in part because Deon is new to the energy industry.
• Drilling Contractor is taking stories through September for its next issue, and the team publishes 24 online issues a year.
• Bisnow is currently preparing to launch an energy section; the publication plans to be online by August 1. They want pictures of people and events.
• Hart’s E&P always welcomes submissions for online posting, but the print magazine is released during the first week of each month and stories have to be wrapped up six weeks earlier. Judy Murray suggested to call her directly to increase chances of getting a story accepted. E&P also mentioned the possibility of using company blog posts on the E&P homepage.

The energy journalists discussed the hot topics for the second half of 2011. Almost every reporter said: Shale/unconventional gas and regulatory issues.

However, each publication discussed handling the topics slightly differently:

• HBJ would focus on how businesses make money through shale.
• World Oil wants shale stories and stories regarding regulatory compliance in deepwater.
• Hart’s E&P is delving into other unconventional gas including oil sands, tight gas, and heavy oil.
• Drilling Contractor is interested in shale stories and reminded the audience that their stories were written for operators, not just for drilling contractors.
• Bisnow is interested in the key people behind the shale industry

The audience asked how the publications handle an energy crisis issue. Here is what two editors had to say:

• David Cohen mentioned that a controversial internal issue might be included in a columns or reports section, such as the Shale Energy Report.
• Judy Murray noted the magazine would not print a controversial story, but would welcome the company to post an unedited blog or article for the magazine’s weekly e-newsletter.

A special thanks to our clients for attending and to PRSA for allowing us to sponsor!

Thank you,

Angelica Nelson