NFTs / metaverse : What are journalists looking for?

Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and metaverse have grabbed international headlines in 2022. Using NFTs to build brand value has become the latest component in many corporates’ marketing playbooks, with executives and communicators seeing a world of new opportunities that may put their brands ahead of others.

Telum Media recently reached out to journalists from more than 20 publications (e.g. Reuters, Hong Kong Economic Times, The Standard, iMoney Magazine) to find out what kind of NFTs- and metaverse-related pitches would catch their eyeballs and the best way of pitching to them.

Below are the key takeaways:

A developing field: NFTs and metaverse are a developing space, with many media outlets here in Hong Kong having no specific beat reporters covering them. Making the right pitch to the right person is therefore essential.
Context matters: Same as everybody else, journalists are constantly made aware of what’s new with NFTs / metaverse such as the latest gadgets and jargon. A good pitch should always be self-explanatory and presented with good context. A background about what a company does and why it is significant is always helpful.
Cross-sector nature: Think NFTs and metaverse as a story angle rather than a specific sector. While a lifestyle publication may cover NFTs collectibles, the corporate news section of a broadsheet newspaper can also run an interview with a company CEO about his metaverse and NFTs vision. As a new paradigm, metaverse and NFTs can go well beyond the scope of the Business / Finance / Technology Desks.

A list of what’s on their agenda is available exclusively to Telum clients.

Media publication	Journalist	Interested topics? What makes a good NFTs / metaverse pitch?
Blockchain.News	Mervyn Kwan	Local NFTs company spokespersons and technology industry are welcomed. I also open to coffee meetings.
BusinessFocus	Jenny Lam	I prefer to receive PR pitches that their senior executives are willing to conduct video interviews with us.
Forbes Asia	Cat Wang	I would like to receive story ideas about NTFs topics from the angle of green technology.
Forbes Asia	Zinnia Lee	I am covering most crypto-related news for the team, including NFTs and metaverse.
Forkast.News	Yohan Yun	I will write articles related to NFTs, metaverse and web3. Exclusive pitches are my favorites to read. Pitches that I know are sent to hundreds of other editorial desks do not seem as rare as the exclusive embargoes, hence diluting its value as I read along. If I know that we have a good story that can be told exclusively to our readers, I am more likely to invest my resources into making that happen.
HK01	Jenna Huang	I welcome pitches regarding the application of non-fungible tokens (NFTs). She is keen on learning more about the practical NFTs use cases beyond digital artworks. Please send the materials to my email first.
HK01	Ken Lai	I am interested in the art technology related NFTs and Metaverse. I think a good NFTs pitch including telling readers NFT is not just commercial speculation (educated public), which can provide more possibilities in future Metaverse. Also let readers know NFTs are not totally equal to digital artwork, it will be an important direction of art development in the future, and give a more different experience in comparison with traditional art collection.
Hong Kong Economic Times	Cecilia Au	We welcome press materials and story ideas regarding metaverse, NFTs and the latest updates in the digital assets sector for our Investment Desk.
Hong Kong Economic Times	Daisy Cheung	Our team tends to cover more breaking news in the future so we welcome more press releases. Company interviews with CEO or spokesperson in this sector are welcomed.
Hong Kong Economic Times	Mafrey Tsang	Stories about NFTs investment, PRs are suggested to reach out to the Finance / Investment Desk. We tend to cover gaming and its application in various sectors. We also produce stories in video format. If the company can do a video interview, it will be great.
Hong Kong Economic Journal's StartupBeat	Stephen Chan	Our team covers startup news, Artificial Intelligence (AI), FinTech, Biotechnology, and Esports (also known as electronic sports, e-sports, or eSports). NFTs is one of the hot topics this year and we of course welcome relevant pitches. PRs are highly recommended to visit our website before pitches.
iMoney	Gensan Yim	I am currently looking into what are the practical applications of blockchain technology in NTFs, such as in GameFi (game finance) and CRM (customer relationship management). I will also consider covering the topic of metaverse from the angles of AR (Augmented reality) and VR (Virtual reality) and the virtual economy.
Ming Pao	Sit Wai Kit	I cover technology including NFTs and metaverse.
Ming Pao	Winnie Tse	I focus more on the business performances of the companies or startups that are in the sector of NTFs and metaverse.
Reuters	Josh Yu	My main areas of interest: crypto regulations, new crypto/metaverse funds, high-level personnel changes, talent acquisition costs, crypto's anti-censorship use, crypto's environmental costs, minority inclusion and new derivative products. If it is metaverse specifically, I'm also interested in hardware development (XR, VR, AR). Tips: I'd like to get access to c-suite folks even if it's off the record. Any details with regards to valuation, fundraising and big backers help paint the story.
Sing Tao Daily	Miki Kwong	I am interested in learning more about NFTs application, particularly gaming and arts sectors. Please drop me a line via WhatsApp before calling me to pitch a story.
Tatler Hong Kong	Cristen Tsoi	I will write some articles about NFTs. I am interested in any press materials / story pitches on culture, style, lifestyle, art and tech-related. Please note that I may receive lots of emails related to NFTs / metaverse in recently, so that I will need to take more time to check in those emails.
Tatler Hong Kong	Zabrina Lo	I am preparing a series of stories related to NFTs. I welcome press materials and story pitches about art and tech-related, Asian and women-led projects. Any general news related to NFTs are also welcomed that I can help forward those press materials to my teammates.
The Standard	Caroline Zheng	New trend in NFTs / metaverse market rather than specific projects and how NFTs / metaverse interact with the development of crypto and web3.
Vogue Hong Kong	Ceci Wong	I will write some articles about NFTs. My main areas of interest is beauty. I am concerning the story angle of press materials / pitches of NFTs.

In Telum's database, you can find out the editorial preference of a particular journalist anytime, anywhere. Should you want to find out more about the publications or journalists that have covered NFTs / metaverse, drop us an email at talks@telummedia.com, and we'll further investigate for you.

NFTs / metaverse : What are journalists looking for?

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