HARO’s comeback: Modern sourcing for journalists and brands

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In this episode, Brett Farmiloe joins host Jason Mudd to discuss the comeback of HARO and smarter PR pitching. 

Tune in to learn more! 

Meet Our Guest:

Our episode guest is Brett Farmiloe, founder and CEO at Help a Reporter Out (HARO). Brett has scaled startups and worked with global brands, and he helps professionals share their expertise online. His mission is to make knowledge more accessible and human.

Five things you’ll learn from this episode:

1. Why HARO was revived and what’s changed since its launch

2. How journalist profiles and “Open to Write” signals improve pitch success

3. Tips for better pitches with fewer blasts to stand out to reporters

4. How HARO is expanding to support journalists beyond sourcing experts

5. How PR pros can measure expert authority instead of vanity placements in the AI era

More About Brett Farmiloe

Brett Farmiloe is the CEO of Help a Reporter Out (HARO), a platform connecting journalists with sources to create expert-powered content. An entrepreneur and author, Brett has scaled startups, collaborated with global brands, and helped thousands of professionals share their expertise. His mission is to make knowledge more accessible and human online.

Quotables

“Our goal at the end of the day is to connect journalists with great sources for stories.” — Brett Farmiloe

“When sources come to us and they're like, ‘What do I do here? How do I be helpful?’ It's really in the HARO acronym: It's be Helpful, be Authentic, be Relevant, and be On time.” — Brett Farmiloe

“Be authentic; don't just use 100% AI, and add your own human expertise to things.” — Brett Farmiloe

“What comes around, goes around, and I really think that just being helpful and friendly and nice to people goes a long way.” — Jason Mudd

If you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to share it with a colleague or friend. You may also support us through Buy Me a Coffee or by leaving us a quick podcast review.

Guest’s contact info and resources:

@BrettFarmiloe on X

Brett Farmiloe on LinkedIn

Help a Reporter Out website

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Listen to more episodes of the On Top of PR with Jason Mudd podcast.

Find out more about Axia Public Relations.

Additional Resources:

6 tips for using HARO to pitch your story

HARO Shifts to Connectively: What does this mean for PR professionals?

Authentic PR: Giving it a human touch

PR pros have a new way to connect with reporters

If you like this episode, you're going to love this:

How to improve your media pitches

Building relationships with Peter Shankman

Making your media pitches stand out with Qwoted

Recorded: November 10, 2025

Support the show

• On Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.
• On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.