‘Newsjacking’ Harry and Meghan

by | Jun 6, 2018

To paraphrase the classic song, “We’re just wild about H-a-r-r-y.”

For Brits and Yanks, the May 19, 2018, wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle is still on our minds as this posts 18 days later.

If you are a writer, you can use this topic tomorrow or 10 years from now. Readers will still know who Harry and Meghan are.

You knew … by reading the title … who this post is about. Right?

Defining ‘newsjacking’

Although David Meerman Scott invented the phrase, I was introduced to newsjacking by Joan Stewart, “The Publicity Hound.”

My definition of a newsjack:

Grabbing a hot news topic and using it to
promote something important.
This might be a cause, business, person, or event.

Newsjacking = in-the-moment

Freelance writers usually don’t have the luxury of waiting a couple of weeks before jumping into the fray (as I did with this evergreen topic of Harry and Meghan).

Capitalize on the story-of-the-hour and run with it.

In May 2018, it was “Royal Wedding Watch” parties, which were perfect for coffee shops, bakeries, and history museums.

Most offered high tea – or at least tea and scones – along with a huge TV screen to share it all with other royal watchers.

See? Perfect newsjack.

(The ‘funnest’ wedding ring photo I could find!)

Harry and Meghan are still news …

… and will be for a bazillion years. Let’s face it.

The great thing about the royals?
Whether they’re the real thing or local celebrities?
There’s always something newsworthy about them.
Plan ahead, be ready, and hit it out of the ballpark.

‘Outside the box’

I suggest letting everyone else write about Harry and Meghan’s first anniversary, purchasing a home in the U.S. (I wonder if the rumors are true), and what they’ll name their first kidlet.

How about a fresh approach?

For example:

• Why does Harry wear a wedding ring? The other Windsor men don’t.

• Harry’s mother is Diana, Princess of Wales, not Diana Spencer. Why is the next gen using maiden names?

Here are the ‘Outside…’ newsjacks

First: did the influence of his American wife put a ring on Harry’s finger? No one is asking this question. It’s a great newsjack for a jeweler, wedding planner, or historian.

Secondly: why do people refer to Harry’s wife as Meghan Markle instead of Meghan, Duchess of Sussex? Or call William’s wife Kate Middleton instead of Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge?

Why the changes?

Who started the new trends?

When and why?

Does it tick off the royal family?
(This one could be the most fun to explore.)

Enquiring minds want to know … and you’re the one to tell ’em!


Your Takeaway: ‘Newsjacking’ is the ability to take advantage of a current news topic while promoting a cause, business, person, or event. It’s a great tool, but you usually have to move fast.

Note: I mentioned The Publicity Hound earlier. Although she focuses on free publicity for authors, Joan Stewart has a ton of good info in many areas. If you’re in business, you may want two of her free cheat sheets.

Click the button to download 89 Reasons to Write a Press Release and Top 10 Free Tools for Free Publicity.

Check out Joan’s free cheat sheets here

Join the Conversation: Have you created a buzz by newsjacking a topic?

Please share this post, join the conversation in the comments section, and tell us about your experience.

Inspire us!


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2 Comments

  1. Ron

    What a way to draw people to another website! Thanks for the info on Joan.

    Reply
    • Kathie York

      Ron,
      It’s always nice to ‘give back’ when you can. Joan’s provided me SO much good information!
      Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you enjoyed the ‘newsjack’ 🙂

      Reply

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Kathie York, CSQE
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