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Why I send every non-relevant PR pitch to spam
Futurism reports on how an army of AI-generated PR reps are flooding journalists’ inboxes — not only with their initial pitches, but also with constant follow-ups:
I started sifting through my inbox. All told, I found dozens of emails from at least fifteen distinct fake personas operated by Movchan, hailing from a potpourri of fake PR firms. There was “Abigail Anderson,” for instance, reaching out from “abigail[@]kirometaco[.]com,” as well as “Sarai Singleton” at “sarai[@]maviosharehq[.]com,” and “Scarlet Walton” at “scarlet[@]divojoinio[.]com.”
Though their headshots didn’t come with the giveaway “this-person-does-not-exist[.]com” watermark, the images appeared decidedly machine-generated. None of these alleged PR reps had any online presence beyond my personal inbox — which was strange, given their apparent careers as professional connectors.
This is why I’ve been forced to get extremely harsh in how I manage my inbox. Writing a daily newsletter leaves zero room for email clutter. A few years ago, I instituted a strict one-strike policy: if a PR pitch isn't tailored to my specific coverage, it gets marked as spam and permanently blacklisted.
This might sound draconian, but I’ve found that if a PR rep is shotgunning out pitches to thousands of journalists, then the chances that they’ll one day pitch me something I’ll actually want to cover are near 0%.
The situation was bad even before the rise of AI. Survey data suggests there are six PR reps for every one journalist, and for years they’ve been leveraging mass-spamming platforms to automate their pitches and cast as wide a net as possible. For any working journalist, it’s basically trench warfare, and the problem is only getting worse.
ICYMI: How an interest in whiskey birthed a thriving media company
The Whiskey Wash capitalized on the rise of craft distilleries and is almost entirely funded through digital advertising.
Social media influencers pivot to ragebait
With content saturation at an all time high, social media influencers who used to publish simple lifestyle videos have leaned into content designed to enrage their viewers — usually by depicting themselves doing something extremely wasteful. They claim it’s the only way to stand out in an algorithmic feed that only rewards engagement. Their biggest challenge is keeping this ragebait brand safe enough to continue attracting sponsors. [New York]
There’s even more media news curation in my Substack Chat
This is a reminder that I’m extremely active in my Substack chat, which anyone can access. Not only am I curating media industry news there, but I’m also very responsive to user comments. Come chat with me and other media operators!
Partisans are weaponizing AI-generated spam on YouTube
A network of right-wing YouTube channels is using AI-generated avatars to spread misinformation about California in an apparent effort to damage Governor Gavin Newsom. Many of the videos revolve around fabricated stories claiming that major retailers are shutting down stores across the state.
Newsom’s office has worked with YouTube to remove more than 700 of these channels, and I wouldn’t be surprised if political campaigns and government offices soon need dedicated teams whose sole job is identifying and reporting AI-generated misinformation. [Semafor]
Behind the paywall
Here’s what I have on deck for paid subscribers:
Could you rebuild 60 Minutes from the ground up?
Time Magazine’s smart creator strategy
Netflix is forcing YouTubers to cut out their sponsored ad reads
Let’s jump into it…