Jeremy Allen is an executive editor at The Michigan Chronicle, where he oversees the editorial department of reporters and a social media manager. He also plays a major role in writing Michigan Chronicle’s editorial page offerings.
Can you tell us what types of stories, trends or issues are on your radar now?
We place a huge focus on issues that impact Black residents in SE Michigan and things that interest Black residents, from politics to sports to education and entertainment and development. We also put a big focus on human interest stories and things that might otherwise go undocumented by other major media outlets in the city.
Describe the craziest or most fun story you have written.
That’s tough because there always seems to be something crazy happening around town! But covering the 2024 presidential race was pretty wild. The candidates had a huge interest in Michigan so they were campaigning here every week. Being part of President Biden’s motorcade was pretty crazy, and sitting in a room with Oprah and then-VP Kamala Harris was also pretty surreal. Interviewing then-presidential-candidate Donald Trump was pretty wild, too. I knew he was pretty unfiltered, but seeing it firsthand in an interview was a whole other experience.
What story or stories are you most proud of?
Recently, our coverage of the Michigan Senate race has been great to watch. We do community storytelling all the time, and that comes with its own set of rewards. But being in the midst of a globally watched race, and being asked to appear on local, national, and international media platforms was really a feather in out cap for the level of detailed coverage we provided the race.
What elements or characteristics do you look for in a story?
Uniqueness, human interest, impact on community, characters/people involved. All of these elements are important.
How long have you been in journalism and how did you get started?
Professionally, for over 15 years. But I knew I’d be a journalist when I was 4 years old. My dad told me I had to stop being the first to open his newspaper. (I loved reading the sports section then.) I started a school newsletter when I was in fourth grade. I did the same in middle school. I was the editor of my high school newspaper and I wrote for my college newspaper for three years. I got my first professional journalism job a year or so out of college. I’ve left the industry to do athletic media relations, public relations, and marketing, but I always find my way back to my first love.
Finish this sentence: If I am not reporting, I am …
golfing or spending time with my family.
What advice do you have for PR people that want to pitch you?
Most newsrooms these days are small, so we have to be quite selective about how we spend our time reporting. Make sure the stories are unique. Sometimes we can simply turn a press release into a short story if it has quotes and photos with it, but if it’s not a unique story (to the public, not to you!) then we likely won’t have time to work on a story for your clients.
Any pet peeves with PR people?
We don’t work for your clients as news folks, and some PR people feel entitled to have stories done.
Be mindful that doing a story for you/your client once is not a pass to have a story done every time you send a press release, so following up as though it’s our duty to report on your client can become quite annoying.
We’re probably able to do a pre-event story OR a post-event story, but likely not both unless it’s a HUGE story. Some PR people don’t govern themselves like they understand that, and emails/phone calls can become a little testy.
One communication is sufficient. Don’t call, text, email, and inbox on social media. That’s too much and it’ll likely get you ignored. A friendly ping through one communication channel is sufficient. If it goes unanswered, it’s likely because the reporter doesn’t have the time to commit to your story or because it’s not broadly appealing enough to the audience that outlet serves.
Tell us a little about yourself (family, interests, hobbies, background, some fact about you that few people know, etc.)
I’ve got four children ranging in age from 10-20 years old. I’m an avid golfer (14 handicap), and I love watching Jeopardy! I’m also a sports nerd, with my favorite sports being basketball and football. Stevie Wonder is my favorite musician. I’m a two-time graduate of Eastern Michigan University.
