40 Questions PR Managers Should Ask Before Trusting AI
AI can write a press release that reads correctly but fails to interest a single journalist. It can summarise media coverage accurately and still miss the story that matters. Your judgement about what will actually work in the real world cannot be automated.
These are suggestions. Use the ones that fit your situation.
1Does this AI-drafted release have a single sentence that would make a journalist stop scrolling, or does it follow the standard structure that every organisation publishes?
2Which specific journalists at target publications have covered similar stories, and does this release speak to what they actually wrote about last time?
3Would I send this release to a relationship contact first, or would I be embarrassed to put it in their inbox?
4Does the AI version explain why this matters right now, or does it explain what happened in the order it happened?
5Are there quotes from the CEO or named executive that sound like they actually speak, or do they sound like a press release?
6Has the AI included details that would interest a journalist but that the organisation didn't explicitly mention?
7If I removed the quotes and company name, would a journalist recognise this as a real story or as corporate messaging?
8Does this release answer the question a journalist would actually ask, or does it answer the questions the organisation wants asked?
9Is there a specific trade publication that would care about this, and does the release use the language and context that publication understands?
10Before distribution through Cision AI, have I tested this release on one real journalist contact to see if they would actually use it?
Media Monitoring and Sentiment Analysis
11When Meltwater AI flags a mention as neutral, does the actual article contain criticism that a human reader would immediately notice?
12Are there mentions the AI summarised that a competitor could weaponise, even though they read as positive in the summary?
13Does the AI's categorisation of your brand sentiment match what you know about each journalist's actual stance on your organisation?
14If the AI flagged a trend, can you trace it back to actual coverage, or is it pattern-matching across unrelated mentions?
15Does the tone analysis from Claude or ChatGPT match what you remember about how that publication usually covers your sector?
16Are there mentions the AI filtered out as low-priority that could signal an emerging story before it spreads?
17When the AI summarises 50 articles into three key themes, which actual stories did it combine or drop?
18Does the AI pick up on insider language or subtext that shows what journalists are really thinking, or just surface sentiment?
19If your organisation is mentioned alongside a competitor, does the AI notice the comparison even if it's not explicit?
20Has the AI identified which journalists are moving toward a critical stance before they publish a major story about your sector?
Crisis Communications and Response Strategy
21When AI drafts a crisis response, does it sound like your CEO or organisation speaking, or like a legal template?
22Does the AI response address what the public is actually angry about, or what the playbook says you should address?
23Are there specific journalist contacts who broke related stories before, and does the AI version account for their particular interests?
24If you publish this response, will it de-escalate the situation or become the story that spreads further?
25Does the AI version acknowledge what people saw or heard, or does it jump straight to your explanation?
26Are there trade-offs in this situation that the AI has missed because it optimised for sounding responsible?
27Would you stake your reputation on this response, or does it read like something written to avoid liability?
28Does the timing of publication matter in this crisis, and has the AI understood when the moment to respond actually is?
29Are there stakeholders whose concerns this response ignores because they were not explicit in the input to the AI?
30If this crisis touches on an existing relationship with a major stakeholder, does the AI version maintain that relationship or risk it?
Narrative Strategy and Relationship Judgment
31When ChatGPT suggests a narrative angle, can you trace it back to what journalists in your sector are actually writing about?
32Does the AI understand the difference between a story journalists will cover and a story your organisation wants told?
33Are there relationships with specific journalists or editors that this AI-generated approach could damage?
34Has the AI recognised which media contacts have editorial independence versus those who simply republish your statements?
35When the AI suggests a particular angle, would the journalists you know actually find it interesting or just obvious?
36Does the strategy account for how individual journalists have covered your organisation in the past, or treat all media as the same?
37Are there storytelling choices in the AI version that could alienate specific communities or audiences you need to reach?
38If you follow this narrative strategy, are you building the kind of media relationships that survive beyond the AI-assisted campaign?
39Does the AI understand the context of your sector's current conversation, or is it working from generic communication principles?
40What would a journalist who knows your organisation think if they realised an AI system had written this messaging?
How to use these questions
Before distribution, send AI-drafted press releases to one relationship contact at a target publication and ask directly whether they would use it. Their answer tells you more than any tool can.
When AI flags a media mention as positive, read the actual article yourself. Look for conditional language, comparisons to competitors, or implied criticism that sentiment analysis misses.
In crisis situations, reject any AI response that does not address the specific emotion or concern that people are expressing. Accuracy is not the same as relevance.
Build a personal database of which journalists have covered stories similar to what you are promoting. Use this list to check whether AI has understood your actual media targets.
When an AI system suggests a narrative angle or strategy, ask yourself whether it is suggesting something you would have thought of, or something you would have rejected as too obvious or too generic.