Request an embargo on a story with rationale and terms

intermediateClaude SonnetPR & CommunicationsMedia Relationsembargomedia-relationspressexclusivesemail

Use case

Use when offering exclusive or embargoed access to a story. The output is short, defines terms unambiguously (what's embargoed, until when, in which timezone), explains the rationale, and avoids the begging tone that makes embargo offers easy to decline.

The prompt

You are a senior PR director who has placed embargoed stories at TechCrunch, Reuters, Axios, and The Information. Draft an embargo request email to {{journalist_name}} at {{publication}} for {{story_subject}}.

Inputs:
- Embargo lift time and timezone: {{lift_time}}
- What is included under embargo: {{covered_assets}} (release, executive interviews, customer references, data, demo)
- Why we're offering this exclusively or with embargo: {{rationale}}
- What we're asking the journalist to commit to: {{terms}}
- Risk if declined: {{fallback}} (e.g., "we'll go open release Friday")
- Existing relationship context: {{relationship}}

The email should:
- Have a subject line that signals "embargo" without sounding desperate
- Open with one sentence stating the offer (what + when)
- Include a clearly bulleted "embargo terms" block: lift time, what's covered, what's not, who else has it
- Explain the rationale in one paragraph (why this journalist, why now)
- State a deadline for them to respond yes/no
- Be under 200 words

Hard rules:
- Do not use "thrilled," "exciting," or "groundbreaking."
- Do not say "we wanted to make sure you saw this first" if it isn't true.
- Be specific about the timezone (no "Tuesday morning" — write "Tuesday April 14, 8:00am ET").
- If you're offering a true exclusive, say so. If it's an embargo to a select group, say that instead. Do not blur the two.
- Include a one-line clause stating that if they decline, the offer goes to the next publication on the list. This is standard and signals a real process.

Output: subject line, then email, then a 2-bullet note on what to do if they ask to negotiate the terms.

Variables

{{{{journalist_name}}}}Replace with your {{journalist name}}
{{{{publication}}}}Replace with your {{publication}}
{{{{story_subject}}}}Replace with your {{story subject}}
{{{{lift_time}}}}Replace with your {{lift time}}
{{{{covered_assets}}}}Replace with your {{covered assets}}
{{{{rationale}}}}Replace with your {{rationale}}
{{{{terms}}}}Replace with your {{terms}}
{{{{fallback}}}}Replace with your {{fallback}}
{{{{relationship}}}}Replace with your {{relationship}}

Example

Input

journalist_name: Kate Clark
publication: The Information
story_subject: Linden AI's $42M Series B and competitor-churn customer wins
lift_time: Tuesday April 14, 8:00am ET
covered_assets: Press release, 30-min interview with CEO Maya Okafor, 20-min interview with Bessemer partner Talia Roth, on-the-record customer interview with Brightpath, and exclusive deflection benchmark dataset
rationale: She published a piece last week on consolidation in the AI support category. Our story is the winning side of that thesis with named customer churn data.
terms: True exclusive (no other outlet has the round details). Other Tier 2 publications get a 24-hour embargo starting at lift.
fallback: If declined by EOD Wednesday April 9, the exclusive goes to Ron Miller at TechCrunch.
relationship: We've never placed with Kate before. Comms lead has read her last 12 pieces and our CEO has cited her work publicly.

Output

Subject: Exclusive embargo offer — Series B + customer-churn data, lifts April 14 8am ET

Kate,

Offering The Information an exclusive on Linden AI's $42M Series B, with embargo lifting Tuesday April 14, 8:00am ET.

Embargo terms
- Lift: Tuesday April 14, 8:00am ET
- Covered: round details, lead investor (Bessemer), customer wins from competitor churn, exclusive deflection benchmark dataset
- Exclusive until lift: yes, no other outlet has the round details before then
- Post-lift: 24-hour embargo extends to a small Tier 2 list

This builds directly on your piece last week on consolidation in the AI support category. We can give you the named churn data behind that thesis: three Q1 customers who left Ada or Forethought for us, two of whom we can put on the record. Plus a 30-minute interview with Maya Okafor (CEO), 20 minutes with Talia Roth at Bessemer on the investment thesis, and a customer interview with Brightpath.

If you're in, I can have the full briefing materials over by EOD Friday. We'd need a yes or no by EOD Wednesday April 9 — if it's not the right fit, we'll take the exclusive to TechCrunch.

— Sara, Linden AI

If she negotiates:
- Most common ask is to extend the exclusive window post-lift. Acceptable up to 6 hours; beyond that, the Tier 2 list loses interest.
- Do not move the lift time to accommodate her print cycle. Other comms hold a 24-hour clock from this lift; moving it cascades.

Tips for best results

1Embargo emails are won or lost on specificity. 'Tuesday morning' is not a time. '8:00am ET' is.
2Always state a fallback. Journalists know there's a list; pretending otherwise reads as inexperienced.
3Never offer 'an exclusive' if you've already shopped it. Trade press communities are small and the betrayal cost is high.
4If the journalist asks to negotiate the lift time to fit their publication cycle, be willing to flex by hours, not days. Other comms are ticking from the same clock.
5Embargo breaks happen. Have a plan for the day-of in case another outlet publishes early — it usually means accelerating the broader release rather than scolding.

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Need help implementing this prompt in your workflow?

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You are a senior PR director who has placed embargoed stories at TechCrunch, Reuters, Axios, and The Information. Draft an embargo request email to {{journalist_name}} at {{publication}} for {{story_subject}}. Inputs: - Embargo lift time and timezone: {{lift_time}} - What is included under embargo: {{covered_assets}} (release, executive interviews, customer references, data, demo) - Why we're offering this exclusively or with embargo: {{rationale}} - What we're asking the journalist to commit to: {{terms}} - Risk if declined: {{fallback}} (e.g., "we'll go open release Friday") - Existing relationship context: {{relationship}} The email should: - Have a subject line that signals "embargo" without sounding desperate - Open with one sentence stating the offer (what + when) - Include a clearly bulleted "embargo terms" block: lift time, what's covered, what's not, who else has it - Explain the rationale in one paragraph (why this journalist, why now) - State a deadline for them to respond yes/no - Be under 200 words Hard rules: - Do not use "thrilled," "exciting," or "groundbreaking." - Do not say "we wanted to make sure you saw this first" if it isn't true. - Be specific about the timezone (no "Tuesday morning" — write "Tuesday April 14, 8:00am ET"). - If you're offering a true exclusive, say so. If it's an embargo to a select group, say that instead. Do not blur the two. - Include a one-line clause stating that if they decline, the offer goes to the next publication on the list. This is standard and signals a real process. Output: subject line, then email, then a 2-bullet note on what to do if they ask to negotiate the terms.

Variables

{{{{journalist_name}}}}Replace with your {{journalist name}}

{{{{publication}}}}Replace with your {{publication}}

{{{{story_subject}}}}Replace with your {{story subject}}

{{{{lift_time}}}}Replace with your {{lift time}}

{{{{covered_assets}}}}Replace with your {{covered assets}}

{{{{rationale}}}}Replace with your {{rationale}}

{{{{terms}}}}Replace with your {{terms}}

{{{{fallback}}}}Replace with your {{fallback}}

{{{{relationship}}}}Replace with your {{relationship}}

Example

Input

journalist_name: Kate Clark
publication: The Information
story_subject: Linden AI's $42M Series B and competitor-churn customer wins
lift_time: Tuesday April 14, 8:00am ET
covered_assets: Press release, 30-min interview with CEO Maya Okafor, 20-min interview with Bessemer partner Talia Roth, on-the-record customer interview with Brightpath, and exclusive deflection benchmark dataset
rationale: She published a piece last week on consolidation in the AI support category. Our story is the winning side of that thesis with named customer churn data.
terms: True exclusive (no other outlet has the round details). Other Tier 2 publications get a 24-hour embargo starting at lift.
fallback: If declined by EOD Wednesday April 9, the exclusive goes to Ron Miller at TechCrunch.
relationship: We've never placed with Kate before. Comms lead has read her last 12 pieces and our CEO has cited her work publicly.

Output

Subject: Exclusive embargo offer — Series B + customer-churn data, lifts April 14 8am ET

Kate,

Offering The Information an exclusive on Linden AI's $42M Series B, with embargo lifting Tuesday April 14, 8:00am ET.

Embargo terms
- Lift: Tuesday April 14, 8:00am ET
- Covered: round details, lead investor (Bessemer), customer wins from competitor churn, exclusive deflection benchmark dataset
- Exclusive until lift: yes, no other outlet has the round details before then
- Post-lift: 24-hour embargo extends to a small Tier 2 list

This builds directly on your piece last week on consolidation in the AI support category. We can give you the named churn data behind that thesis: three Q1 customers who left Ada or Forethought for us, two of whom we can put on the record. Plus a 30-minute interview with Maya Okafor (CEO), 20 minutes with Talia Roth at Bessemer on the investment thesis, and a customer interview with Brightpath.

If you're in, I can have the full briefing materials over by EOD Friday. We'd need a yes or no by EOD Wednesday April 9 — if it's not the right fit, we'll take the exclusive to TechCrunch.

— Sara, Linden AI

If she negotiates:
- Most common ask is to extend the exclusive window post-lift. Acceptable up to 6 hours; beyond that, the Tier 2 list loses interest.
- Do not move the lift time to accommodate her print cycle. Other comms hold a 24-hour clock from this lift; moving it cascades.

Tips for best results

1Embargo emails are won or lost on specificity. 'Tuesday morning' is not a time. '8:00am ET' is.

2Always state a fallback. Journalists know there's a list; pretending otherwise reads as inexperienced.

3Never offer 'an exclusive' if you've already shopped it. Trade press communities are small and the betrayal cost is high.

4If the journalist asks to negotiate the lift time to fit their publication cycle, be willing to flex by hours, not days. Other comms are ticking from the same clock.

5Embargo breaks happen. Have a plan for the day-of in case another outlet publishes early — it usually means accelerating the broader release rather than scolding.