The Catholic Miscellany is the official newspaper of the Diocese of Charleston. This
weekly publication strives to present news stories and events covering a range of
activities by Catholics throughout South Carolina.

While all meetings and events cannot be covered by Miscellany staff, parish communications contacts and other individuals are encouraged to submit news. The Catholic Miscellany does not try to explain in detail each event – it can only give highlights and provide some resources for more information. Here is some helpful advice about submitting articles to the newspaper:

Story Ideas

Know of someone who truly lives out the life of an apostle, or a group that is making a special effort to help the community, a priest or religious who gives without expectation, someone or something that touches other people’s lives and makes a difference? Let us know.

News may best be described as that which is new, unusual, out of the ordinary,
significant, of interest because it is different, and not happening to anyone else. Or it may be an item of interest in how a particular group or parish is reacting to a given event.

Many events can be reported in advance so they will be in print immediately after they
take place, if in doubt, send it to the editorial office. Do not assume because the bishop, diocesan staff, or pastors know about an upcoming event, that the editorial office will.

Please note that routine and everyday activities and meetings of a church, parish,
school or other organization do not qualify as newsworthy. Due to space constraints and a commitment to covering all aspects of the diocese equally, The Catholic Miscellany cannot cover these items.

People and Events

Events should be open to the community at large, such as a yard sale, guest speakers, workshops, etc. Publication and frequency is not guaranteed. Items such as regular meetings, requests for donations, bingo or raffles will not be included. 

Send in information about an event with at least two weeks notice. Include the time, date, place, contact person and number with area code.

Articles

Sending in a press release? The primary purpose of a press release is to deliver a relevant and newsworthy story about your subject to the reader. Readers of The Catholic Miscellany are located throughout the state, not just in one parish. Newsworthy items are about regular people doing extraordinary things, parishes or people making unusual efforts, and events that have a diocesan-wide impact or interest.

Photographs

Photographs should be of real people doing real things. Pictures should be of people in action situations and should be imaginative and candid if possible. At least ¾ of a
person’s face should be shown.

Groups should be close up and limited to three people; rarely if ever, more than five.
Including a full group of people in any event detracts from the picture by making the
subjects too small to be recognized. Choose a representative sampling of individuals in actions concerning the events.

Photos must be timely, bright, focused and unedited. Be sure to fully and correctly identify each person shown. Photos cannot be returned unless a self-addressed envelope is submitted with it. Digital photos are preferred and should be of high resolution.

Letters to the Editor

Letters to the editor are welcome. They are published at the editor’s discretion. Items
should cover one subject, be relevant to news covered in the paper, be charitable if in
disagreement, and are subject to editing in order to conform to space requirements. Please limit to 250 words and provide name and contact information. The Miscellany does not guarantee the publication of letters.Letters represent the opinion of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Miscellany or the Diocese of Charleston.

Writing a Press Release

Press releases should provide useful, accurate and interesting information. It should contain: who, when, what, where, why and how.

Keep it simple and stick to the facts, avoid embellishments. Tell the story as concisely as possible. Avoid adding extra fluff words that distract from the true meaning of your press release. Don’t include clichés and jargon that may not be understood by the general reader.

Remember the following style:

1.      The opening paragraph must summarize the press release with the following paragraphs providing the detail.

2.      The body of the press release should be written with the most important information and quotes first. This inverted pyramid technique is used so that if editors need to cut the story to fit space constraints, they can cut from the end without losing critical information.

3.      The Closing Paragraph:  Repeat the critical contact information, including the name of the person, his or her phone number and/or email address.

Sample Press Release

City, Date, 2010 — The first few paragraphs contain the most important information:
who, what, when, where, why and how.

A press release has short sentences and about three or four lines per paragraph.
The rest of the news release expounds on the information provided in the first
paragraph. It includes accurate quotes from key people. It contains more details
about the news you have to tell, which can be about something unique or about a
prominent person, place or thing.

Finally, provide contact information include the full name of the person, a phone
number and an e-mail address.

To contact The Catholic Miscellany call (843) 724-8375 or email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it