The Other Side of the PR Pitch with Pulitzer Prize Winner Yael Grauer

SPEAKER_1 (0:02)

You're listening to the CyberWire Network powered by N2K. Welcome to the Breaking Through in Cybersecurity Marketing podcast, where we explore the hottest topics in cyber marketing, interview experts, and help you become a better cybersecurity marketer.

Gianna Whitver (0:28)

Hello, and welcome to another episode of Breaking Through in Cybersecurity Marketing. I'm your host, Gianna Whitver, here with our first, I think Pulitzer Prize-winning guest of the episode. We have Yael Grauer. She is a freelance investigative reporter at YaelWrites, and she's also a program manager in Cybersecurity Research at Consumer Reports, and has done a lot of independent cybersecurity and privacy reporting, as well as works with clients and folks today writing about important things in the world of cybersecurity and privacy.

Yael, so excited to have you on. Again, I don't even know if I've ever spoken to a Pulitzer Prize winner, so this is like an honor.

Yael Grauer (1:16)

Oh, thank you.

Gianna Whitver (1:18)

Tell us about the work that got you your Pulitzer.

Yael Grauer (1:21)

So it's actually a joint project that I worked on with a bunch of people at The Associated Press, and we were, I acquired a database. So we were basically trying to look at surveillance tech by land to soft that's used in China, but also we kind of traced it to being used around the world and like how Silicon Valley basically built the mechanisms that are being used for this type of surveillance, which they try to kind of cover up a little bit sometimes, or not, they don't really advertise it. So it was a lot of digging through procurement files, digging through all the data that we acquired and just trying to kind of piece that story together.

Gianna Whitver (1:56)

That's so cool. What, and this is for the AP, for The Associated Press?

Yael Grauer (2:00)

Yeah.

Gianna Whitver (2:01)

How long did that investigation take?

Yael Grauer (2:04)

That took, I think it took three years. I had done sort of a similar investigation for The Intercept, that was just based on Surveillance of Weakers, and then this was more extensive. But yeah, it always, the investigations always take so long.

Gianna Whitver (2:19)

You know, what a thing. I know, I'm sure you've done other investigations. You know, I know you've done other investigations that don't necessarily result in a Pulitzer, but how cool that this one that took so much time and effort and energy got you that award. That's awesome.

Yael Grauer (2:34)

Yeah, it was pretty crazy because I got laid off and then won a Pulitzer. So it's been like a rollercoaster of a year.

I don't even know how to take this, but yeah, I don't know.

Gianna Whitver (2:46)

The ups and the downs, like one of the most lauded, hard to get awards in journalism and then yeah, layoffs too.

It's like rollercoaster world, I know, in journalism for sure. Listeners, we're definitely going to link to that article in the show notes so that you can read it too and also of course, to Yael's website so you can see more about her work. But today's topic is going to be about PR. As a journalist, Yael, before we get into the topic today, which will be about the intersection of journalism and PR and how PR firms and PR professionals in cyber can work better with journalists and be more helpful and relevant to the work that you do. Tell us just a little bit more about how you got into this world of privacy and security and technology reporting.

Yael Grauer (3:33)

Oh, sure. Yeah. I was actually a freelancer doing a lot of health writing. I was doing blogging about how to market your small business, like that kind of thing. Then I was getting harassed online. I'm like, suddenly I developed a new found interest in my own privacy and security. I was spending so much time on it that I'm like, I need to pitch these stories so I can get paid.

Then I was like, this is actually way more interesting than what I had been covering to write about. I felt like I was getting a little bored.

Gianna Whitver (4:06)

There's only so many ways you can help a small business.

Yael Grauer (4:09)

No, I was actually more bored with the health writing because I felt like it was almost a little bit gimmicky sometimes.

Gianna Whitver (4:16)

Here's 10 fruits you could eat to lower your blood pressure?

Yael Grauer (4:20)

Yeah. Does this predict how long you live? No, it does not.

It was fun for a while, but after a while, I was like, this is it.