Describe your job.
I'm kind of an old-school journalist even though I re-entered that game after 15 years as a PR consultant. For the past four years I've been the Southeast Regional Correspondent for PRWeek magazine. Since last year, I have also been a regular contributor to several lifestyle publications, including Atlanta Magazine.

What time/day is best to call?
I commute between Atlanta and Los Angeles, but stay on East Coast time when in LA. It sounds improbable, but during the week, early is never too early and late is never too late. I accommodate my sources to ensure the best and most accurate reporting.

How do you like to be contacted? (e-mail, phone, fax, mail)
Email is always the best way to reach me first, but I'm practically hardwired to my cell phone so if you have a breaking story don't hesitate to call me there.

Which topics are hot right now? Which are not?
The public relations industry is in the same crisis as the entire service industry. The only way agencies and corporate communicators are going to secure their positions in a tight economy is to learn business basics. Clients cut PR first because communicators fail to tie their work to revenue generation. Learning the client's business is also the best way to introduce tangible metrics that justify your budgets.

From a lifestyle perspective, the era of conspicuous consumerism is over. Oh sure, people still want the coolest stuff. They want an Herme's birkin, but not because it costs $9,000. It's only cool if they got the real thing at a deep, deep discount. And not everything is about flash. It's about acquiring quality classics. Style is now equated to a sense of personal authenticity. This shift can be seen in the rising circulation of magazines like "Real Simple" and "O-The Oprah Magazine".

What's your most memorable experience with a pr person?
The CEO of a major national agency got frustrated because I wouldn't buy his spin on the closing of the firm's Atlanta office. He called my Editor-in-Chief and "granted" an interview on the subject. The editor, newly arrived from London, did not know the context of the situation. Not only did he buy the spin, but he also inserted the CEO's ridiculous quote in my story, under my byline, without informing me. Everyone in Atlanta knew the CEO's statement was specious. I got tons of calls from folks around town who thought I had lost my mind. It was embarrassing.

Anything else you'd like Atlanta's public relations industry to know?
Don't end run the local reporter by pitching directly to the home office. It's disrespectful and the editors assign local correspondents for the purpose of fielding the high volume of pitches that come from that region. They also rely on the reporter's intimate knowledge of that region, its players and market dynamics. In addition, although it's redundant because you read it here all the time, know the publication you're pitching, and it's not news if it's three months old. Everyone who has ever pitched me a story gets an email from me with boilerplate questions apropos to the publication being pitched, which should be used as a guideline for all future pitches.

Our thanks to this month's Media Pro Guest Columnist.
Kimberly Krautter
Regional Correspondent
PR Week
PO Box 52667
Atlanta, Georgia 30355-0667
Phone: (678) 641-5684
E-mail: krautter.writes@mindspring.com