#MediaMonday – Sebastian Blanco

It’s time for another #MediaMonday! Our latest feature comes from our Public Relations Global Network partner agency in Detroit, Bianchi Public Relations. Bianchi Public Relations focuses on automotive, mobility, technology and related professional service firms in the business-to-business sector.

The agency’s Meet The Media series recently featured Sebastian Blanco, the editor-in-chief of Automotive Engineering Magazine. Check out a snippet below and meet Sebastian in the full post here!

What types of stories, trends or issues are on your radar now?

The continued growth of electric vehicles never bores me, even after 15+ years. In 2024, I expect to focus on the technical details of EV powertrains, ADAS and automated driving technologies – including sensors and silicon – as these are the building blocks for our future cars, and companies are absolutely working on them today.

What elements or characteristics do you look for in a story?

I’m  now most interested in stories that reveal a little something about how engineers attack problems. Whether that’s through collaboration (like the way the Honda Prologue and Chevy Blazer EV were put together) or simply a new way to look at things, what engineers are thinking about is a key way to understand the future.

What advice do you have for PR people that want to pitch you?

Make sure that you double-check the name on your pitch. I’m not XX and I might not write for the boilerplate publication you have listed. We’re all stressed for time, but when you don’t take the time to respect the people you’re pitching, they’re not going to respect your pitch.

Any pet peeves with PR people?

Pretending like they know me when they say, “I read your article on …” at the start of their pitch. I can tell when they just linked to the first result of their search. I know it’s not a standard PR trait, but being honest and saying “We’d like to reach out to you, a stranger, because of …” will work on me more times than the pseudo-friend angle.