There's a narrative in PR that sensitive health topics — fertility, hormones, menopause, infant health — are just harder to pitch, full stop.

Irina Karelina, founder of Fungi PR, has spent a decade proving that's not quite right.

In this episode, Irina breaks down how her agency turned a hormone-literacy campaign for Mira into over a billion media impressions and six awards — without ever putting the product at the center of the pitch.

We get into why journalists ignore evergreen problems, the counterintuitive data insight that outperformed the obvious one, and how she navigates the privacy line when pitching real user stories on deeply personal topics.If you work in digital PR, link building, or content marketing and you've ever struggled to make a "boring" or sensitive topic newsworthy, this one's for you.

⏰ Timestamps

00:00 - Intro

04:48 - What actually makes these topics hard to pitch

08:37 - Case study: Carrot Fertility & Evvy's "Equal Research Day"

13:19 - Tactical breakdown: awareness weeks, the hormone tester stunt

14:42 - Quick-turn campaigns: COVID vaccine and GLP-1 drugs

16:53 - Finding trends through social listening

18:48 - The biggest mindset shift

21:14 - Common mistakes PRs make with data pitches

24:19 - Handling sensitive topics without exploiting sources

28:47 - Bridging the gap between PR and marketing teams

30:41 - Building trust with client teams as a freelancer

😀 Connect with Irina Karelina:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karelina/?locale=en-US

• Fungi PR: https://fungipr.com/

🐝 Try ListIQ (AI-powered media list building):https://www.buzzstream.com/listiq/ — get free credits when you sign up

🔗 See the full episode: https://www.buzzstream.com/blog/sensitive-pr-podcast/

🔔 Subscribe for more conversations with digital PR and link building practitioners.

Cyrus Shepard is back on the BuzzStream Podcast to break down his AI Citation Ranking Factors study, a deep dive into dozens of research papers on what actually gets a brand cited by AI.

We talk through why URL accessibility still trips people up, why domain authority barely correlates with AI citations, why llms.txt has zero evidence behind it (yet), and why your "About Us" page might be more important than ever.

⏰ TIMESTAMPS:

0:00 – Intro

2:06 – Citations vs. mentions: which one actually matters?

7:03 – Ranking factor #1: URL accessibility

9:00 – Search rank and "fan-out" rank explained

11:15 – Query answer match and intent format match

13:00 – The truth about llms.txt

16:29 – Writing for AI vs. writing for people

19:46 – The "skyscraper" reversal and Gemini's citation budget

22:07 – Why your About Us page matters more than ever

25:16 – Domain authority barely correlates with AI citations

27:41 – Will Google crack down on mention spam?

29:30 – Trust as the new SEO currency

32:42 – Cyrus's elevator pitch for showing up in AI

🔗 LINKS:

• Read Cyrus's full study on Zyppy Signal: https://signal.zyppy.com/p/ai-citation-ranking-factors

• Check out ListIQ, BuzzStream's media list building tool: https://www.buzzstream.com/listiq

• Connect with Cyrus on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cyrusshepard/

• See the full post: https://www.buzzstream.com/blog/ai-citation-ranking-factors-podcast/

If you found this useful, subscribe for more conversations on SEO, digital PR, and AI search — and drop any questions for Cyrus in the comments; we'll get them answered.

There's a lot of noise right now about how to show up in AI search. Listicles, prompt injection widgets, fake expert commentary — a lot of it is working.

For now.

Lily Ray (VP of SEO Strategy at Amsiv, named #1 most influential SEO expert by USA Today) has spent years doing recovery work for sites burned by past algorithm updates.

That gives her a very different take than most.

In this episode:

00:00 – Intro

02:24 – How Lily thinks about Google announcements and GEO advice

06:30 – Does LLMs.txt actually matter?

09:47 – What E-E-A-T really is (and isn't)

12:34 – How closely to follow the Search Quality Rater Guidelines

15:14 – The riskiest tactics people are doing right now

18:57 – Fake experts, fake personas, and the listicle problem

22:00 – Is there a silver bullet for AI search visibility?

25:21 – Is digital PR heading for a Penguin-style crackdown?

28:39 – How to build lasting AI visibility the right way

Find Lily:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lily-ray-44755615/
• Substack: https://lilyraynyc.substack.com/

Links mentioned:

• Google Search Quality Rater Guidelines: https://services.google.com/fh/files/misc/hsw-sqrg.pdf
• ListIQ: www.buzzstream.com/listiq/

In this episode, SEO veteran Kevin Gibbons (founder of Resignal) and digital PR expert Darren Kingman (founder of Root Digital) share why they joined forces and how SEO and digital PR work better together.

Discover practical insights on tying campaigns to products, proving ROI through revenue, building link reputation, and avoiding vanity metrics in the modern search landscape.

⏰ Chapters

[00:00] Introduction

[01:24] Why Resignal Expanded Into Digital PR

[05:46] Why Root Digital Joined Forces

[06:45] The Synergy Between SEO and Digital PR

[09:17] Surveying Clients: Why Digital PR Was the Fit

[11:17] Links for Links' Sake vs. Brand-Led PR

[14:54] Should Campaigns Be Tied to Specific Products?

[17:28] Commercial Angle, PR Hook & SEO Value

[18:43] Vanity Metrics and Client Pushback

[20:57] The Paris Syndrome Campaign: A Case Study

[23:07] Drawing the Through-Line From PR to Rankings

[27:36] Why Revenue Is the KPI

[32:02] The "1,000 Links a Month" Problem

[34:11] When a Brand Doesn't Need Links

[38:50] Merging Two Agencies: Navigating Differences

[44:47] Where to Find Kevin & Darren

🔗 Links

Resignal - https://resignal.com

Root Digital - https://rootdigital.co.uk

ListIQ Media List Builder - https://buzzstream.com/listiq

International digital PR is something I don't have much experience with, so this was a fun one to record.

I sat down with Libby Windle and Eirini Theodoridou of Connective3 to dig into what it actually takes to run digital PR across borders.

We talk building a team, ideating for different markets, and pitching to journalists who all work differently depending on where they are.

We also get into why native speakers are non-negotiable, why the city-index campaign is running out of road, what content lands in Europe versus the US, and how to keep up with trends across a dozen different media landscapes.🔗 Links and resources

Check out Connective3: https://connective3.com/

Connect with Libby and Erini on LinkedIn:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/eirinitheodoridou/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/libby-windle-9497b486/

Try List IQ, our AI-powered media list building tool:

https://www.buzzstream.com/listiq/

⏱️ TIMESTAMPS

00:00 – Intro

02:16 – How Connective3 got into international PR

08:09 – Building a team with native experts

12:19 – Ideating & pitching for different markets

16:54 – The tactical differences between countries

25:30 – Starting from scratch: team & content strategy

33:32 – Are city-index campaigns played out?

39:18 – Where to expand first from the UK

43:45 – Keeping up with trends across markets

48:53 – Final advice for going international

Like, subscribe, and share with your colleagues 🙏

Most digital PR professionals have never sat inside a newsroom.

That gap in understanding is where many great campaigns quietly die.

In this episode, Vince sits down with Jade Denby (Head of Digital PR, Marketing Signals) and Sam Forrester (former news editor at Reach PLC, now acting Head of Content at Marketing Signals) for one of the most honest conversations we've had about the journalist-PR relationship — and what digital PR teams can do differently.

Sam spent over 15 years inside Reach PLC, one of the UK's biggest regional news networks. Jade has been leading digital PR teams on the agency side for over 15 years.

They now work together — and the insights that come out of that combination are the kind you really can't Google.

⏰ Timestamps

00:00 — Introduction

01:42 — Meet Jade Denby and Sam Forrester

04:06 — Sam's 15 years at Reach PLC

06:14 — What digital PRs misunderstand about newsrooms

10:32 — How Jade has adapted her digital PR strategy

17:43 — A day in the life of a news editor

22:23 — How to be more strategic with your pitching

30:35 — The fake expert problem at Reach PLC

35:30 — Should digital PRs be doing more localization?

40:49 — Do newsrooms understand SEO?

49:01 — Where journalism and digital PR are heading

🔔 Subscribe for more digital PR tips, newsroom insights, and outreach strategy every week.

🛠 Try List IQ — our AI-powered media list builder: https://www.buzzstream.com/listiq/

📩 Connect with Jade Denby on LinkedIn: https://uk.linkedin.com/in/jadedenby

📩 Connect with Sam Forrester on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-forrester-62836493/

📩 Learn more about Marketing Signals: marketingsignals.com

📩 Check out the full episode: https://www.buzzstream.com/blog/digital-prs-vs-journalists-podcast/

If you're in the beauty industry and want to get coverage, listen up!

In this episode, Claire Coleman, a seasoned freelance editor and journalist in the beauty industry, shares insights on PR strategies, relationship building, pitching techniques, and the evolving media landscape.

Discover how to craft compelling stories, understand media rhythms, and leverage relationships for successful media coverage.

⏰ Chapters

00:00 Introduction

01:35 A Day in the Life of a Freelance Journalist

05:48 The Shift from Print to Digital Media

09:50 Challenges in the Beauty PR Industry

11:56 Understanding Effective Pitches

17:05 The Importance of Storytelling in Pitches

20:55 Building Relationships with Journalists

27:02 Effective Communication Strategies

31:31 Consultancy and Substack Insights

🔗 Links and Resources:

https://www.buzzstream.com/blog/beauty-pr-podcast/

https://www.clairecoleman.com/

http://beautygeekery.substack.com

https://www.buzzstream.com/listiq/

Lars Lofgren joins the BuzzStream podcast to pull back the curtain on some of the shadiest corners of the modern web — from e-commerce scams to Reddit reputation attacks to the link building tactics making a comeback.

⏰ Timestamps

00:05 – Intro

02:02 – The Highland cow scam

09:08 – Why marketers should study the dark side of the internet

14:25 – The Codesmith case

30:38 – The Forbes Advisor

35:36 – Old-school black hat tactics

40:45 – How HCU flipped the equation

47:43 – Why digital PR is having a renaissance

51:49 – How to think about risk

🐝 Check out the full post: https://www.buzzstream.com/blog/scams-spam-podcast/

🛠️ Try List IQ — build targeted media lists from Google News in seconds: https://www.buzzstream.com/listiq/

📬 Connect with Lars:

• LarsLofgren.com
• https://www.linkedin.com/in/larslofgren

🔗Links mentioned —

• https://larslofgren.com/forbes-marketplace/
• https://larslofgren.com/codesmith-reddit-reputation-attack/
• https://larslofgren.com/highland-cow-scam/
  

Veteran journalist and freelancer Rob Waugh joins Vince Nero to pull back the curtain on what's really happening in media and digital PR right now.

With nearly 30 years in the industry — from the Daily Mail to The Telegraph to Yahoo News — Rob has a uniquely sharp perspective on the fake expert epidemic, AI-generated pitches, and what it actually takes to get coverage in 2026.

If you're in digital PR, this one is required listening.

⏱ Timestamps:

00:05 – Intro

02:05 – Are fake experts a new problem, or just a bigger one?

04:34 – The real danger: AI hallucinations spreading misinformation

06:51 – Are journalists using AI to generate story ideas?

12:00 – UK vs. US PR: key differences in approach

15:42 – How Rob uncovered the fake expert story (Barbara Santini)

20:57 – What old-school newspaper journalism taught Rob about what makes a story

25:58 – What PR pros should be pitching in 2026

30:36 – How to find the hook: always pitch the headline

36:31 – If Rob ran a digital PR agency, here's what he'd do

🔔 Subscribe for more digital PR insights, tips, and interviews:

• Here's a link to the full post: https://www.buzzstream.com/blog/fake-experts-podcast/

• 🛠 Try List IQ — our free AI-powered media list building tool: https://www.buzzstream.com/listiq/
• 🔗 Connect with Rob Waugh on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rob-waugh-38731a23/
• 📰 Read Rob's work on Press Gazette: https://pressgazette.co.uk/author/robwaugh/

Traditional PR pro Carly Martinetti (co-founder of Notably) joins Vince to break down what good PR actually looks like — and what digital PR practitioners can learn from it.

They get into the real differences between traditional and digital PR, why spray-and-pray pitching is killing your reputation, and how to find the "Goldilocks zone" journalist that makes every pitch count.

⏰ Chapters

0:00 – Intro
4:54 – How is traditional PR different from digital PR?
9:11 – Are clients asking about AI citations and LLM mentions?
12:44 – How do you measure PR success and tie it to business goals?
19:43 – How do you build a media list? Tools, process, and the Goldilocks zone
26:29 – Creating an angle from nothing vs. piggybacking on a trend
28:58 – What does a great pitch actually look like?
34:11 – Breaking news vs. evergreen pitches — knowing the difference

🐝 Links

Connect with Carly: linkedin.com/in/prcarly/
Notably: notablypr.com
Try List IQ free: buzzstream.com/listiq/