Rachel Curry, is a freelance journalist and contributor to CNBC
In this episode of Coffee with a Journalist, we chat with CNBC contributor Rachel Curry about the freelance grind, shifting media landscape, and her new newsletter Acronym, which cuts through corporate jargon to tell the real story. Enjoy!
Follow Rachel on her socials below:
LinkedIn: Rachel Curry
Author Page: Writings Of Rachel
CNBC Author Page: Rachel Curry
Click below to listen to the full conversation and read below for highlights from the interview:
[0:08:26] BB: Okay. You’re doing it, of course. I love it. Okay. Tell us a little bit, Rachel, you mentioned you put pitching to your editors, and so forth. Walk us through, or tell us a little bit about how you pitch. How does that look?
[0:08:42] RC: Yeah. I might get an idea from just what's going on in the world, or an interesting fact that I encounter, or statistic, or technological advancement and build a story around that. I might build a story based on an expert that I have available in my inbox, who has a particularly interesting take and build on that. Ultimately, I'm thinking about building stories that resonate with something that's going on in the cultural, political zeitgeist of some kind, has some sort of problem and then solution, hopefully. That way, we're not just harping on one side or the other. It's hopefully providing a more balanced, nuanced take there. Whether I have the sources, or I need to go get some additional sources, I do try to build a story around different viewpoints.
For example, I just wrote a story on how, and this still has yet to go live. I'm not sure if it will be live by the time this is out, but on how the artificial intelligence, advancements around education could potentially fill gaps, despite defunding at the federal level for the Department of Education, and you can only imagine the varying perspectives on that. Obviously, we all have the same goal, which is bringing children up and hopefully, healthy environments that can propel them toward success, but what that may look like is different for different people. As someone with my own perspectives, I have to put that aside to talk to certain people, but also, make sure I'm asking them everyone questions that could poke holes in their story.
Click below to sign up for OnePitch and use these insights in your next pitch!
[0:15:47] BB: Okay. Rachel, I'm thinking a little bit more – Oh, I'm going to ask you this. What's a typical day for you as a freelance?
[0:15:55] RC: There is no such thing. There is no such thing.
[0:15:58] BB: Okay. Tell us more.
[0:16:00] RC: Which is how I like it. I'm someone who, when I was in college, that was the peak of my existence, because I was taking all these credits, working a part-time job, also on the newspaper.
[0:16:14] BB: Yeah. Doing all the things. Doing all the things.
[0:16:16] RC: Doing all the things. All over the place, never in the same spot for more than a couple of hours. When I went into the workforce after school, I was so bored sitting somewhere all day, doing the same thing. Nowadays, I mean, it really depends. I might have a day where I've got five interviews for three different stories. That can be a little bit confusing. But as long as I organize my calendar appropriately, I can make sure I'm not saying the wrong thing to the wrong person. You have to be a bit organized and playing well. Don't accidentally say, this is a story for CNBC when it's actually not.
[0:16:52] BB: Yeah. Yeah.
[0:16:53] RC: I've never done that, but it's a fear of mine. My favorite type of day is when I'm writing one long-ass story for six to eight hours and have nothing else to do, because that's where I shine. It's just like, I can put on my dark academia, classical YouTube series on my noise canceling headphones and shout out the world. More commonly, I'm –
[0:17:21] BB: Sounds fun.
[0:17:22] RC: - spending half a day writing, half a day doing other tasks, like contacting sources, preparing interview questions, transcribing interviews is big.
[0:17:33] BB: By the way, by the way, you don't use AI for that? You like to transcribe it? Or tell us more.
[0:17:38] RC: I use Otter, but it's not perfect. Just like, you still need to go through everything. It turns down the time, but you still need to go through it manually for sure.
[0:17:49] BB: Got you. Okay. Excellent. It's good to know. I know, manually, it also helps it sink in if you ask me, because then you're like, “Oh, hmm. This point, that point, connect the dots,” and so forth.
[0:17:58] RC: Yeah, for the most part, it's just revising whatever they think was said to what was actually said. Maybe it's the accent of the person. Maybe it's just the audio quality. Maybe it's the fact that they're talking about the Susquehanna River, which is where I live near and transcription services don't really know what the hell that means.
[0:18:16] BB: Yeah, exactly, exactly.
[0:18:17] RC: You're right. I like to do it, and then shortly thereafter write the story, because it just reminds me of everything we talked about.
[0:18:28] BB: Okay, Rachel, we have a rapid-fire question set if you're ready for it. Shall we do it?
[0:18:33] RC: All right.
[0:18:34] BB: Let's do it. Phone, or video interview?
[0:18:38] RC: Video. Unless, I'm really tired.
[0:18:41] BB: Okay. Why video? Why video?
[0:18:45] RC: I prefer video, because it just allows you to understand the source a little bit more and that helps you build a better connection with them, gain their trust, and then you can ultimately have a more candid and more candid interview with better quotes. When people are comfortable with you, that tends to be the case. Sometimes I like phone. Usually, it's when I'm fed up with the videos. I've done that week and I just don't really feel like doing it. I guess, it's a little bit selfish.
[0:19:17] BB: Yup. I hear you on that. Okay, bullet points or paragraphs in a pitch?
[0:19:22] RC: Bullet points, for sure. If there are paragraphs, definitely take advantage of the bold formatting, because it's very helpful. Maybe both.
[0:19:31] BB: Maybe both. Short, or long pitches? I would say, short then.
[0:19:36] RC: Short pitches with additional information as needed after the signature is super helpful.
[0:19:43] BB: Okay.
[0:19:43] RC: Because I can choose to look further if I need to.
[0:19:49] BB: Images attached, or Dropbox zip file?
[0:19:52] RC: Oh, Dropbox. Because I think it's just easier for me to add it to a different tab and look at it after.
[0:20:00] BB: Okay. Okay. That's an unusual answer. Okay. Email, or DM somewhere, somehow, to whatever it is? Well, you're not going through around as we just discussed.
[0:20:11] RC: Emails most likely. I am on LinkedIn, so I'll accept it in there. For the love of God, do not text or call me, and that has happened.
[0:20:23] BB: We haven't heard of, for the love of God, for a while on this show. Let's make sure – Katrina, make sure we call that one out. That's fun. For the love of God, for Rachel Curry, no calls or text, you can imagine. Love it. Okay. One follow-up, or multiple?
[0:20:37] RC: One follow up is plenty. Unless, we've already communicated a little and I said, I'll get back to you, which I do a lot. I'm putting a pin in it and saying, I'll be in touch once I get this moving.
[0:20:50] BB: Yes. Direct, or creative subject line?
[0:20:53] RC: Direct, because I think you could do creative. But to do that, you really have to put yourself in the journalist mindset and really, the editor's mindset, because most journalists are not writing headlines. If you want to make a really headline ask subject line, that would be cool, because that makes it easier for me to pitch to my editor. However, that's really hard, even for me. I would just go with direct.
[0:21:23] BB: Press release or media kit?
[0:21:25] RC: Media kit. I would say, press releases can be fine. They're just so long. Usually, I just file them for reference later if I need it for a story.
[0:21:36] BB: A time that you usually read pitches?
[0:21:39] RC: Oh, I'm not a good person to ask this question, because like I said earlier –
[0:21:41] BB: All the time. Yeah. All the time. You’re not feeling that, what are you going to do?
[0:21:45] RC: All the time, or none of the time.
[0:21:46] BB: Or none of the time.
[0:21:47] RC: There's no in between.
________
You can find more conversations with journalists from leading outlets when you subscribe to the Coffee with a Journalist podcast to get the latest insights as soon as they drop. Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter for other updates on our newest tips, tools, and top strategies.
Fill out the form below to subscribe to Coffee with a Journalist and receive weekly emails highlighting reporters, journalists, and editors and their individual pitching preferences.