Photo credit: Gavin Llewellyn
Every profession has its own slang and jargon. Public relations is no exception. You’ve got to know “PR speak” to fit in. You don’t want to feel embarrassed or out of the loop when colleagues toss around the profession’s slang.
PR has plenty of slang terminology that doesn’t exist outside the profession or has different meanings. Plus, journalists employ jargon, some which overlaps PR, that everyone in PR must understand to effectively pitch story ideas and work with journalists.
These are some of the top PR and media slang terms to master.
FOB/BOB. Front of the book and back of the book. Columns and shorter stories typically run in the front of the book. The back of the book may be reserved for certain types of articles, like shopping information and recipes.
EIC. Editor-in-chief, as in the publication’s boss.
Hed and dek. Sometimes head and deck. The article headline and the smaller, but perhaps longer, description or teaser that immediately follows.
TK. A place holder for unknown, but the information will come later. A reporter may interview you then ask you to “fill in the TKs.”
Reel. A short film montage of live TV and video clips. A TV show producer may ask for your reel to see how you, or your client, act on TV. Send links to video appearances if you don’t have a reel.
Pubs. Publications. Someone may say, “We need to get media coverage in 200 pubs.”
Hits. Media coverage.
Clips. Records of media coverage. Now almost entirely in digital form.
Opp. Opportunity, as in an opportunity to get media coverage
Journo. A journalist or reporter.
Open the kimono. Reveal more details
Prezo. A PowerPoint presentation.
B-roll. A video of highlights of your company or event you’re promoting. They’re often sent to broadcast outlets to demonstrate potential before sending the entire footage.
Ed cals. Editorial calendars, the predetermined story topics of media outlets.
Boilerplate. The short description of a company, usually at the end of a press release, or any standard copy included in every document.
Evergreen. A story that retains timeliness and can be pitched or published any time as opposed to news that is only relevant during a certain period of time.
In-house. PR done inside a business rather than an outside agency.
Flack. A publicist or PR professional, often used by journos as a derogatory term for a bad PR pro.
Hack. A derogatory term used by flacks to describe a bad reporting job or unprofessional reporter.
Crossing the wire. A press release distributed over a newswire service. The term comes from the time when news services communicated via electrical telegraphy.
SOV. Share of voice, a barometer of visibility often used by brands or companies in competitive industries.
Two suggestions about slang: First, if you don’t know a slang term (or acronym) that a colleague or client uses, it’s best to ask for clarification. Once they give the answer, you can always say: “Yes, of course” as if you knew but forgot. Second, it’s best to avoid using slang or acronyms when working with the uninitiated.
Bottom Line: Understanding PR jargon and slang makes you fit in better. Quiz next week.
References:
What PR or journo slang terms would you add to the list? Your suggestions welcome.
William J. Comcowich founded and served as CEO of CyberAlert LLC, the predecessor of Glean.info. He is currently serving as Interim CEO and member of the Board of Directors. Glean.info provides customized media monitoring, media measurement and analytics solutions across all types of traditional and social media.
