One thing is abundantly clear—PR agencies who rely on the “spray and pray” method are doing more harm than good.
For those who may not be familiar with the term, spray and pray refers to the scattershot approach where PR professionals send mass emails or generic pitches to a wide swath of journalists, influencers, and publications.
The hope, often misguided, is that someone—anyone—will bite and write a story. It’s lazy, ineffective, and ultimately alienates the very people that PR agencies rely on: journalists.
I’ve personally noticed the tactic is rampant in Australian public relations and is quickly becoming one of the most despised practices in the industry.
Let’s be clear: PR is not about pushing out as many messages as possible in order to show a client some kind of reach graph and then hoping something sticks.
It’s about meaningful, targeted engagement that builds relationships and establishes trust with journalists. Yet, spray and pray completely ignores this principle.
Public Relations Services in Australia
Public relations firms have held steady in recent years, even amid economic turbulence. While rising inflation in 2022–23 led to trimmed marketing budgets, PR services proved resilient.
The agencies manage communication between an organisation and its public and stakeholders to promote favourable relationships and portray a desired image.
This includes communication with the general public, employees, investors, customers, analysts, governments and other related parties.
In contrast to advertising, press release campaigns aim for exposure through public interest and news items rather than paid advertisements to give their message third-party legitimacy.
Unlike broad media buys, PR is often seen as targeted and cost-effective—less likely to get slashed when budgets tighten. In fact, during the pandemic, falling travel budgets and the need for clear stakeholder communication helped fuel PR demand.
Over the five years to 2023–24, industry revenue grew modestly at an annualised 1.2%, reaching $664.8 million. The stability reflects PR’s evolving role: as media continues to fragment, digital platforms, social media, and influencers have opened up new ways to connect with niche audiences.
Revenue was expected to rise 1.8% in 2023–24, driven by renewed business confidence and increased government spending. Industry profits have also grown on the back of steady demand.
In response to the blending of PR and advertising, we’ve seen a wave of mergers between firms—an ongoing trend as the industry globalises.
Looking ahead, PR revenue is forecast to grow at 2.7% annually through 2028–29, hitting $760.8 million. Both public and private sectors are expected to keep investing in strategic communication to influence audiences and drive engagement.
The Growing Frustration of Journalists & News Outlets
Journalists have a job to do. They are constantly under tight deadlines, sifting through hundreds of pitches, looking for real stories that will resonate with their audience.
When PR agencies take the easy route by sending out generic, irrelevant pitches to hundreds of email inboxes, they are doing nothing but creating a headache.
In fact, some journalists have reported receiving pitches for stories completely unrelated to their beat or publication’s focus. It’s no wonder that many now dismiss these emails without even opening them.
It’s hard not to feel for the journalists who have to deal with these constant disruptions. A journalist’s time is valuable, and the spray and pray tactic shows a complete disregard for that.
Journalists, once willing to entertain these mass emails, now have little patience for them. They’ve grown tired of sifting through the clutter to find something of actual value.
The result? A growing divide between PR agencies and journalists, with trust becoming increasingly hard to earn.
The Real Cost: A Loss of Respect
It’s not just the annoyance of sifting through irrelevant pitches—it’s the broader impact on the relationship between PR agencies and the media.
When a PR firm adopts a spray and pray strategy, it sends a message that they aren’t interested in building real, thoughtful connections. Instead, they treat journalists like a target for free advertising. And that’s exactly what this approach often is: advertising masquerading as news.
The Ethical Concern
PR and communication agencies often blur the lines between earned media and paid promotion. The intent isn’t to provide insightful, newsworthy content—it’s to sneak in a glorified advertisement under the guise of journalism.
The irony? The strategy rarely works in the long run. Journalists remember the PR agencies that consistently send out poor-quality pitches, and many will outright blacklist repeat offenders.
In the end, this means that even if a PR firm suddenly does have a truly newsworthy story to share, they may find that no one is willing to listen.
Here’s the uncomfortable truth that far too many PR agencies and clients don’t want to hear: if you’re trying to promote a clients product launch, a paid service, or something blatantly commercial, then you’re not pitching news—you’re pitching an ad.
News & Media Sites Are Not Free Advertising Platforms.
Expecting a journalist or a news platform to run a story about a purely promotional article for free, without any real news hook, is both entitled and out of touch.
These are professional platforms, not charity boards for corporate announcements. Just as you wouldn’t ask a billboard company to run your ad for free, you shouldn’t expect editorial or even media release coverage without genuine editorial value—or without being willing to pay up.
If a PR agency knows they’re pushing a story that lacks hard news value, is promotional or just outright advertising then they owe it to both their client and the media to have that honest conversation:
“This isn’t going to land organically, but we can explore paid opportunities with reputable outlets.”
Being upfront about this doesn’t cheapen the brand—it shows professionalism and respect for how media actually works.
News platforms—especially online outlets—operate in a highly competitive, metrics-driven environment.
Every article published must serve a purpose: attract readers, generate clicks, increase time on site, and boost search engine visibility.
This is why most reputable newsrooms prioritise evergreen content—stories with lasting relevance that continue to bring in consistent interest and web traffic over time.
In this reality, a pitch that is purely promotional, with little to no broad public appeal, is simply not worth a newsroom’s time.
Journalists and editors are under constant pressure to produce content that performs. They are not going to spend their limited time, energy, or resources publishing content that’s clearly been written to benefit one party: the PR agency or the client.
Let’s be brutally honest here: no legitimate news outlet is going to work for free just so someone else’s client can gain exposure, clicks, and conversions.
If the story isn’t interesting enough to drive real readership or doesn’t offer tangible value to a wider audience, there’s no incentive for a media outlet to publish it – not without compensation anyway.
How PR Agencies Are Failing Clients
This is where many PR agencies fail their clients. They push irrelevant or transparently self-serving content under the guise of “earned media” and wonder why it doesn’t get picked up.
Or worse, they blame the journalists when it doesn’t land, without recognising that what they’re offering isn’t an actual editorial news story that peeks public interest.
Online news platforms are businesses. They pay staff, maintain websites, pay for severs, security licenses and invest in growing their own readership through expensive digital marketing and hours of content creation.
They are not going to give up digital real estate—especially on the homepage, in a newsletter, or in search rankings—unless the content offers something back. And if the only people who benefit are the agency and the client, while the publication sees no ROI, why would they bother?
So here’s the reality: if your content doesn’t have real, lasting interest or editorial value, and you’re not willing to sponsor it or pay for placement, it will most likely be ignored.
It’s not a reflection on the outlet being difficult—it’s just business. Publications aren’t in the business of boosting other people’s profits or contributing to success at their own time, expense and resources.
The takeaway is simple: if it’s not newsworthy, and it’s not evergreen, and it won’t bring attention to the outlet itself—then be prepared to pay. That’s not unethical or unfair. That’s the media economy in action.
Media Relations Still the Backbone of PR – But It’s Burning People Out
Despite the evolving landscape of public relations—where social media, influencer partnerships, and digital storytelling continue to grab the spotlight—one core element remains stubbornly central: media relations.
According to recent data from MuckRack, a staggering 83% of PR professionals say media relations is their most time-consuming task.
While it’s still considered the “special sauce” of the industry—something no other profession truly replicates—it’s also becoming a major source of frustration and burnout.
As agencies and in-house teams juggle ever-increasing client demands, shrinking newsroom sizes, and journalists overwhelmed with irrelevant pitches, the task of earning media coverage has become more complex—and more exhausting. Many PR professionals report feeling stuck in a cycle of chasing coverage that often yields diminishing returns.
“Media relations isn’t dead—it’s just harder and more crowded than ever. It’s still where the magic happens, but it’s also where a lot of the burnout begins.”
The pressure to land earned media, even for stories that lack true editorial value, is a growing pain point across the industry. With journalists’ inboxes flooded and attention spans shrinking, the bar for what gets covered has never been higher—and PRs are feeling the heat.
As the industry continues to diversify its channels and services, many are questioning whether media relations should remain the dominant focus, or whether a more balanced approach—including owned and paid content—might offer a healthier and more sustainable path forward.
For now, one thing’s clear: media relations is still the heart of PR. And like any overworked muscle, it’s starting to show signs of strain resulting in more agencies adopting the spray and pray tactic.
