How to get a chess tournament into the press

An editorial desk receives dozens of emails a day and selects on one criterion: will this interest a reader who is indifferent to the subject? «A chess tournament will take place on Saturday» fails that test - it interests chess players, and they already know from the group chat.

So you need a hook: something that makes the event news.

• A first. The first tournament in town, in a new format, at an unusual venue.
• A record or a scale. The biggest field in years, the hundredth participant, an anniversary evening.
• An unusual place. A bar, a library, a waterfront, a park - visually distinctive, and desks need a picture.
• A human story. An eight-year-old beating a candidate master, three generations of one family playing, a winner who sat down at a board for the first time six months ago.
• A social angle. An event for older people, an inclusive format, work with teenagers from an outlying district.
• A date to hang it on. A city festival, school holidays, a professional day.

The test is simple: if you cannot say why this is news to somebody who does not play chess, there is no hook yet and it is too early to send anything.

Start with the venue's own press office: they already have contacts in newsrooms and a direct interest in publicising what happens on their premises. One call there often beats ten emails to outlets.

The format is tight: an editor should understand the substance in ten seconds and be able to run the text with almost no editing.

1. 1
   Headline

   the substance in one line, no grandeur. «A tournament for three generations comes to the library on Lenin Street for the first time» beats «A festival of chess awaits the city»
2. 2
   First paragraph

   what, where, when, for whom - complete. If the editor keeps only this, the text still has to work
3. 3
   Second paragraph

   detail and numbers: how many players, what format, how many rounds, prizes, whether preparation is needed
4. 4
   A quote

   one, from the organizer: a living sentence about why the event matters, not officialese. Desks like quotes - it is a ready-made element
5. 5
   Contacts and photographs

   a name, a phone number, a registration link and two or three horizontal photographs in good quality

Keep it to a page. Send the text in the body of the email rather than as an attachment - many people simply do not open documents. The subject line is the headline, with no «press release» and no «request to publish».

• The announcement: seven to ten days ahead. Earlier and it is forgotten, later and it cannot be scheduled.
• A reminder: two days ahead. One sentence, as a reply on the same thread.
• The report: that evening or the next morning. News lives for a day; a report a week later is of no use to anyone.
• Tuesday to Thursday morning. Monday is overloaded, Friday is already looking at the weekend.
• Reports get published more readily than announcements. Especially with good photographs: the material is ready and nothing needs approving.

Which is why the report matters more than the announcement, and why a photographer at the event is not a luxury - who takes the pictures.

• Nominate one person to talk to them. Usually the organizer. A journalist should not have to hunt for someone to ask.
• Line up your subjects in advance. Ask two or three players beforehand whether they are willing to comment - there will be no time to find them on the day.
• Warn the room about filming. And give people who would rather not appear a way to stay out of shot.
• Show them where to shoot. A wide shot of the hall, a close-up of clocks and hands, the handshake, the prize-giving.
• Protect the games. Flash photography next to players is unacceptable - explain that before the start, not during.
• Hand over the numbers. Field size, the age of the youngest and oldest player, number of rounds: a journalist needs these and will not count them.

And once the piece is out, thank them and share it. A journalist who has been thanked comes back the second time without any release at all.

A published piece is an asset that keeps working for years, if you use it.

• Save the link and a screenshot. Outlets restructure their sites and delete archives.
• Attach it to grant applications. Press coverage is ready-made evidence that a project matters - about grants.
• Show it to venues and sponsors. «Our events have been covered by these outlets» makes negotiating a room far easier.
• Put it on your own page. An «as featured in» section raises the confidence of newcomers.
• Keep the contact warm. One journalist who enjoyed themselves is worth ten mailshots to newsrooms.