AIBU to be a annoyed with this journalist

[GColdtimer]

I have been doing the publicity for a book about D-day. Spent ages briefing the journalsit, arranging meetings in Normandy with the authors and a couple of the veterans. Lovely piece last sunday about the veterans but no mention of the book which was the basis of the story. I called the journalsit and he promised a follow this week as the veternas went to vist the town where they were based but nothing.

I feel like i have been his own personal PA/researcher and am really pissed off and upset for the authors who ran around after the journalist like headless chickens.

AIBU to be pissed off?

No, I'd be pissed off too (and I am a journalist).

Thank you Edam, that heartening coming from a journalist!

I didn't mean that the way it came out, . I meant that its good to know I am not being an over sensitive publicist!

YANBU - very annoying.

Depending on what the publication was ...

...it may have been subbed out ie not the journos fault.

...and journo may well have proposed a second piece but this may have been spiked (eg ed to journo - vets? you did that last week, do something different this week please)

But whatever the reason you just have to chalk it up to experience - nothing else you can do about it now (unless you you've got ads to cancel or something like that).

Never mind

I know MrsBaldwin, not much I can do at all. And I suppose that could have happened. It was a national so need to keep him on side as have other books coming up I think he will like.

The authors, who are not professional writers (ie, they have written the book in their spare time), have taken it all really personally, bless them.

No I'd be really annoyed. I'm a press officer and have had similar experiences, although not often thankfully. I think it's important to tell the journalist in no uncertain terms that you were very disappointed with the piece and that the authors were too, and that you're even more disappointed that he hasn't honoured his promise to run a second piece.
You can keep him onside but I'd make sure not to put all your eggs into his basket for next time.

Twofalls - just reading your OP again ... Did you/your work pay for journo to go to Normandy or did the publication use someone local?

I ask because if the former it's even more the book didn't get a mention.

And was it for the book pages or a general feature - I suppose the publication may have a policy about mentioning stuff on features pages - but then again there's no reason why a vet couldn't be quoted in the piece as 'Mr D Day, author of a forthcoming book about WW2, said ...' without compromising editorial integrity.

MrsB, no he was going anyway to cover the D-Day services. Two of the vets featured in the book were going to be there and he thought they would be interesting people to talk to, given their particular experienes (like band of brothers just not as famous). It was a feature but would have been legit to give the book a plug as the reason they were there in the first place was to help promote it. And this paper has always given the book a plug where the story has come from me.

mhmummy, thankfully i dont get them too often either, i have really good relationships with most of the journalists I work with. I just won't be offering him first refusal for a story in future.

sorry, didn't mean to write an essay - that's the problem with working for yourself. nobody to moan at

I would be annoyed, too. However (and please don't be offended as I do not mean to offend) is the book published by a large publishing house with a marketing budget or is it something that's independently published or only available online? Because if it;s very 'independent' then the paper might have a sort of guideline about not directly pluggin things like that.