Four Things Open Source Projects Should Know About Dealing with the Press
An open source project that wants greater visibility may well benefit from a mention in the technical or business media. But because open source communities are primarily technical communities, they don't necessarily know how to talk to the press. Here's a few useful things to know.
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Esther Schindler
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- mburton325
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/press page it is
I will add /press to our site. I didnt realize that was the norm... Thanks.-jp
Remember, that a reporter is
Remember, that a reporter is the most important person you will ever meet. So even if they're a giant douche then you have to kiss their ass every chance you get, and buy them lunch, cos they're giving up their life to make YOUR project a success.Well, that's what I got from this article.
Be careful when asking for an immediate answer
The quote in the article, "it generally does mean, 'Drop everything and answer us now,'" is quite disrespectful when approaching solo developers and small teams. Interruptions are so disruptive to the software development process that seasoned software developers don't work with people who make such silly demands. "Drop everything and answer us now," sounds like, "Bow down to me so I can make my deadline at your expense."It's not about respect. It's about opportunities.
There's nothing to say that your project must be covered by the press. Nobody says that, if I ask for your input, you are obligated to provide it.However, some open source projects do want to be noticed by a wider audience. I like to think that several deserve to be.
So if your project is interested in more publicity, then these are guidelines to help us work together better. It's not that my deadline should be more important to you than your code; it's that, if you hope to be included in my article, you have to meet that deadline. Because I have to.
A week after the "upcoming open source apps" article was finished, I got a lovely, friendly, helpful e-mail message from one spokesperson for a very nice open source project. It was too late. The article was done. So the time that individual did put into writing the e-mail was wasted; the opportunity was gone.
You're not as special as you think
Esther,I think you're overestimating your importance and readership.
You remind me of a headhunter who once called me and needed my resume and other paperwork right away. I was supposed to kiss her ass because I needed a job, right? Well, I did the paperwork ASAP, sent her my resume, and never heard from her again.
This is the 21st century; and I can get great exposure by self-publishing on sites like Code Project, and by submitting articles to Slashdot. I will "drop everything" if I know that I'm going to get some good exposure on Slashdot, Wired, Wall Street Journal, ect.
Why should I "drop everything" for you? What kind of exposure are you going to give me? Your articles only average a handful of comments, which in the 21st century means that you have low readership.
If you want to get scoops and quotes from programmers, you need to work at their level. It's believed that many programmers have mild cases of autism, which means that it really will take a few days to get a response from such programmers.
Anyway, I'd like to repeat a sign that I saw in traffic court: "A lack of planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part."
Let me try and say this in a nicer way
Let me try and say this in a nicer way.Whenever I've talked to a reporter, whether it's from a major publication like the Wall Street Journal, my local "major" newspaper back in the 1990s, or a small-time rag that I never heard of, the reporter always thanked me for my time. In all situations, the reporter acknowledged that I helped him or her meet a deadline, complete a job, get published, ect.
Anyone, and I mean anyone, who "drops everything" to help you make a deadline is doing you a favor. Don't forget that, and don't pretend that answering your email is the only opportunity to get publicity.
Do you find that you need to approach programmers, as opposed to PR people, for many of your stories? If so, then it's your responsibility to communicate to your manager / editor that such stories need a longer lead time. Like I said in an earlier response, a lot of programmers probably have mild cases of autism and really do need time to respond.
What makes you think I don't say thank-you?
When I ask for input, I am always friendly and kind. After the article posts, I always tell the contributors that it's up (with the URL) and almost always post the link back to the community where I initially asked the question (so that even those who didn't give me input have an opportunity to find out "the rest of the story"). I have done so for well over a decade.
And, while you may not know me personally, I think I do have a generally positive reputation in the communities where I participate, on FOSS topics as well as many others. Because in most of them I participate, I don't just do a drive-by info-gathering.
...wrong thinking
I don't agree with your statement - I'm a solo developer too. You have to balance the value you will get out of the press release against the time used to respond.If you charge $x per hour and it takes you 10 minutes to respond (and another 10 minutes to get back into work), you have to compare how much it will cost you to place an ad in the newspaper to get the same exposure = $y. If $y is bigger than $x/3 (20 minutes) you drop everything and respond immediately. And $y is ALWAYS bigger than $x/3!
It's a simple if-statement
slashdot comments
This article was highlighted by Slashdot, so there are more comments getting posted over there.Dealing with "Press" on Open Source topics
I agree with the writer's suggestions on effectively dealing with the Press in regard open Source "projects".It becomes almost impossible thought to not call out many "so-called" tech journalists when they publish (knowingly) false, misleading, extremely (unsubstantiated) biased reports and other garbage about particularly Open Source, but other technology projects as well.
I personally have no intention of refraining from clarifying stupidity and outright lies when they occurs, as so ofter happens now-a-days.
W. Anderson
wanderson@kimalcorp.org
Respect does not mean "accept everything"
Oh, by all means, correct us when we are wrong. But it's far more effective to address the fact and not the individual. That is, there's a major difference between, "I believe you are mistaken; this fact is incorrect, as you'll see at LINK" and "You are an idiot." If nothing else, the former lets us (all) get smarter.
Correct facts, sure. But assume that the reporter was simply wrong about that fact (particularly because the right person from the open source project was "too busy coding" to ever respond to her message), not that she was too dumb to understand the answer.
There is no correcting paid ignorance.
I believe the going rate is $2500 for an article/opinion piece spreading misinformation, lies and twisted logic about GNU/Linux and Open Source. Soft-selling Open Source will only signal an easy kill to the astroturfers. I prefer to let them know they are not fooling anyone and that there will be a world After Microsoft. Their words on the Internet will most likely out live the ones on their gravestone. There will be no place to hide for those who trade their principles for Microsoft's money.Describe the project
I am a long time Windows app. developer (think EDIF and Anadigm Inc.) recently converted to Linux.As such I am often looking for an app. that will do some specific task, if it is really useful and interesting then I might even join the development effort.
I am would be amazed at the number of projects that describe their goals in gobblydygook or even have no description at all apart from "its the greatest thing since sliced bread".
Yeah great. :-(
Actually it seems that the root cause is often that the project leaders really have no idea what it is that they are developing either! The result is yet another arcane abandonware project which does no one any good and just wastes the developers efforts.
Like it or not a one paragraph summary is essential - that fact that it is really hard to write is only an indication of how much confusion exists.
'journalism'
to be blunt, there is a difference between a 'journalist' and a reporter'. A 'journalist' is someone who is out to report facts. Nothing else. Theirs is not to sway public opinion or nudge readers toward a direction. 'Reporters' on the other hand, are presenting an agenda. Whether it be their own or someone who pays them, they don't necessarily care about facts unless they happen to coincide with their intention.You use the term 'journalist' a lot in this article, presumably to make people think that at least you yourself are the 'journalist' type. While I can see a 'journalist' appreciating the spoon feeding you suggest in a press page as a mere starting point in their investigation, I would heavily expect that a real 'journalist' would not settle for only that information.
Sadly, there are very few , if any 'true' journalists around anymore. If everyone has their price, then seemingly, the price to buy a media person is at bargain basement levels.
Most of the 'serious' OpenSource projects have a Wiki or information page where all the information you are asking for and much more, with only the need to click on a page or two.
Sadly, there are quite a few projects that suffer from a lack of direction and amateurish presentation. That shouldn't be seen as the generalized picture of Open Source projects overall. There are so many more solid, serious projects outnumbering those pitiful , lackluster others.
I certainly hope you do continue to work at presenting yourself as a 'journalist' and live up to the expectations of such.
The world is indeed far too tired and bored with yet another reporter trying to cash in on someone elses work.
Big Bear
It won't hurt adding your OpenSource project to OpenShare
Also, you can try adding your project to OpenShare (openshare.emotionull.com) and exchanging ads with other OpenSource projects. It seems to be the new hype right now in OpenSource communityCan we work together?
Ester,Sorry I missed your talk at OSCON. I appreciate what you are trying to do, and I agree with many of your concerns. I do feel that your personal approach is getting in the way, however.
You need to realize that open-source is not monolithic. Press exposure is right for some projects, and not for others. Can you help us clarify some of these issues and tailor your suggestions more for typical projects, so that there can be better give-and-take? I think you can; speaking at OSCON shows the requisite initiative.
I can empathize with many of the negative responses I'm seeing on your comments page, but they are also part of the problem. Rather than doing as they have, and biting the outstretched hand, I would like to offer a dialog, hopeful that all parties can engage together.
If you are interested, please email me. Be advised, however, that I will communicate at a pace that is comfortable to me.
Good issues raised
Thanks, Open Mike, for your comments. Yours is an example of what I mentioned in an earlier message: When you disagree, have a conversation, not a confrontation. It makes me glad to respond. ::warm smile::
One error I made in this blog post was that I started from the same assumption I used for the OSCON presentation. That is, the people in the room in San Jose were, by definition, interested in their project working better with the press. Someone who wasn't interested in the topic had plenty of other cool sessions to attend instead.
However, as you said, not every open source project cares about getting press attention. I should have been more explicit that this advice does not necessarily apply to every project. If you're doing it for yourselves, and you don't care about being listed in a "Most important open source apps coming out this year," then it's no hardship for you to not-respond (or to be polite, say "No thanks, no time") when a journalist comes knocking.
Even when a project-as-a-whole does care, it won't matter to every developer involved. That's copacetic; some people get excited about security testing, others by writing doc. We contribute in whatever way makes us comfortable.
My point is that if a project does care about being written about in the media it needs to have at least one person whose role it is to Be Called Upon. Just as it behooves a job seeker to understand something about the way an recruiter works, and it's a good idea for a programmer to actually ask her user how he's going to use the software. It always helps to understand the process. This is my process, and the process of most technology journalists.
Please do read through Josh Berkus' slides, in the link I gave in the resources; he gives a good example of the timeline necessary to send out press releases about the newest version of Open Office or PostgreSQL. And as he so eloquently pointed out, a press release is not a copy of your release notes.
``treating the press like
``treating the press like real humans who, duh, do not consider "coverage" to be quoting from other articles or a FAQ. We call that plagiarism, not coverage.''That's part of my pet peeves about current journalism. It's all about cute kittens and feelings and meaningless drivel and not about truth or technical accuracy.
Is it asking too much to get familiar with a topic before writing about it?
(And yes, I realize it's not just the journalists. "Done tomorrow" deadlines don't help here).
What is ...
1) What is the difference between a press page and a front page designed to present information about the project to the general public?2) Where is the line between enough and too much information?
3) Do you have a list of the journalists we should be contacting about our projects?
4) Did your discussion at OSCON cover how a FOSS project can get people to visit their web site at all?
Later . . . Jim
The Realeyes IDS, check it out at:
http://realeyes.sourceforge.net
meh
I see that the article is targeted towards the opensource projects that are actively looking for exposure. As such, is totally ignorable. Even so, though, contains some obnoxious suggestions.1. "/press page"? What's wrong with an about.html, screenshots.html, news.html and contact.html? At least these are well-known destinations on a website...
2. "Your community guidelines... should include something about treating the press like real humans who, duh, do not consider "coverage" to be quoting from other articles or a FAQ. We call that plagiarism, not coverage". Pure BS. Maybe your questions are exactly and precisely covered by FAQ, in which case that's the place you should look, and not waste anybody's time with mindless repetitions.
3. "If I post a message in your IRC channel asking why you chose an app, please don't send me to the FAQ! I want your personal story." You forget who you're talking to, I find the suggestion highly amusing.
4. "gain some empathy for the journalist POV". Here I have to admin, my personal opinion on journalists is not very good (blame the tv and newspapers). Also, is difficult to have any empathy for a journalist that writes on a website a 3 short pages article, in which each page tries to open 2 pop-ups. Please get a clue
Referral traffic - Most Influential People of Open Source
I'm writing to note the article you mention in this article: "Highly anticipated open-source releases coming in '09" http://www.itworld.com/open-source/65480/highly-anticipated-open-source-releases-coming-09 , drove more traffic this year than any other referring source to MindTouch (until this week--more on this in a moment). This drove more traffic to MindTouch.com than the 3 TechCrunch articles on MindTouch, the 6-8 articles on RWW or any other single source. So, thanks a million Esther! You're wonderful and an exceptional and insightful journalist.Now, I wrote: "until this week". This week Mark Fidelman, a fellow MindToucher, released a list of the most influential people in open source.
"As part of MindTouch’s 2009 open source best practices research, we asked C and VP level Open Source Executives who they thought are the most influential people in the industry today. Over 50 votes from Executives in Europe and North America were cast to determine the 2009 edition (note: they could not vote for anyone in their own company)."
Find the results here: http://www.mindtouch.com/blog/2009/10/27/most-influential-people-in-open-source/ This blog post was wildly popular. It was picked up in two CNet articles and by several other publications. The first day it drove over 7,000 unique visitors. This almost doubled the MindTouch.com daily site traffic. Wow.
Anyway, this is list of influencers is obviously relevant to this blog post. I hope readers here will provide their own list and recommendations.