Last reviewed: October 2026
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This free press release checklist is for communications, PR and marketing teams, and for agencies writing releases for clients. One run is one press release. It starts with the news angle and why it matters now, the audience and a target media list, then every fact and figure checked against its source and quotes approved by the named spokespeople. It covers writing the release (the headline, a first paragraph that answers who, what, when, where and why, the body, the boilerplate and the media contact), images with rights cleared, logos and links, the legal review and the approver’s sign-off, an embargo if you use one, distribution to journalists, a wire service, your newsroom page and social channels, media enquiries and interviews, coverage tracking and a short review. Another organisation named or quoted, a listed organisation, an embargo and a wire service add the tasks they need.
A press release is one announcement, written for journalists, that has to be right the first time. Once it is in someone’s inbox it cannot be called back, so a wrong figure, a quote nobody approved or a partner who did not know they were named becomes a correction you have to ask for in public. That is why this checklist checks every fact against its source, gets every quote approved by the person who said it and has the final text signed off before anything is sent.
It sits beside two other templates. The Product Launch Checklist runs the whole launch, of which press coverage is one strand. The Crisis Management Plan Checklist prepares the team, the decision rights and the holding statements before a crisis; a statement during one is approved through that plan, not this checklist. This checklist runs one press release, from the idea to the coverage review.
Asks: is the news worth telling, is every fact and quote right and approved, and does it reach the journalists who cover the subject?
When: once per release, over about five weeks, from three weeks before the release date to two weeks after it.
Output: an approved release, a record of who got it, answered enquiries, logged coverage and a short review.
Asks: are positioning, pricing, the website, sales and launch day ready for a new product?
When: once per launch, in the Product Launch Checklist.
Output: a product launched across every team, with the press release as one part of it.
Asks: who decides, who speaks and what do we say in the first hours when something goes badly wrong?
When: prepared in advance and tested, in the Crisis Management Plan Checklist.
Output: a crisis team, activation levels, holding statements and a tested call-out.
Nine phases follow one press release from the news angle to the coverage review. The first task records the release date, which every later due date counts from, and four questions: whether another organisation is named or quoted, whether the organisation is listed, whether some journalists get the release early under embargo and whether you use a wire service. Each adds the tasks it needs, and later answers add tasks for interviews, corrections and an announcement that has to come first. The approver signs off the final text before anything is sent.
Answer the questions in the first task before anything else: the release date, whether the release names or quotes another organisation, whether the organisation is listed, whether some journalists get it early under embargo and whether you use a wire service. They add the matching tasks. Every due date after this first task counts in working days before or after the release date, so start the checklist about four weeks before it. A statement during a crisis follows your crisis management plan, not this checklist.
The media list decides who reads the release. A short list of journalists who cover this subject is worth more than a long list of everyone. Check what each one has written recently before you add them.
Every fact and figure in the release needs a source you could show a journalist, and every quote needs the approval of the person it is attributed to. Each check records No concerns or Concerns found.
Write the release in the order a journalist reads it: a headline that says what is new, a first paragraph that tells the whole story, then the detail. Use only the facts in the fact table and the approved quotes.
Journalists use what is easy to use. Send only images you have the right to share, with captions and credits, and check that every link works before the release goes out.
Everyone with a say reads the release before the approver signs it off. Another organisation named or quoted gives its approval in writing, and a listed organisation sends the text to whoever owns market disclosure first. The approver signs off the final text, and nothing after that step can be completed until they do.
Nothing in this phase goes out before the final text is approved. An embargo adds tasks to set its terms and send the release early to the agreed journalists, and a wire service adds a task to book it and check its proof.
The release goes out at the release time to the media list, on the newsroom page and on social channels. A decision that the news must be announced first adds that step before anything else. Interview requests add tasks to brief the spokesperson and follow up.
Track what was published against the outlets on the list, ask for factual errors to be corrected, and write down what to repeat and what to change next time.
Most press releases follow the same order, so journalists know where to look. This is what each part does and what to check before the release goes out. There is no single required format; follow your own house style where it differs.
| Part | What it does | Check before it goes out |
|---|---|---|
| Release line | Says when the release may be published: “For immediate release”, or “Embargoed until” with a date, time and time zone. | It matches the embargo terms and any wire booking, and the time zone is stated. |
| Headline and subheading | Says what is new in one line, with the most useful detail underneath. | It names the organisation and the news, and makes no claim the fact table cannot support. |
| Dateline | Gives the place and the date the news comes from, at the start of the first paragraph. | The date is the release date. |
| First paragraph | Answers who, what, when, where and why. | It tells the whole story on its own. |
| Body | Gives the detail in order of importance: background, what changes, figures, availability and prices. | Every figure is in the fact table, with its source. |
| Quotes | Add opinion and reasons from named people. | Each is approved in writing by the spokesperson, and a quote from another organisation by that organisation. |
| Images, logos and links | Make the story easy to use. | Rights are cleared, captions and credits are written, and links are live at the release time. |
| End mark and boilerplate | Marks the end of the release (“Ends”), then a standard paragraph about the organisation. | Its facts and links are current, with one for each other organisation named. |
| Media contact | Says who answers questions. | They are reachable on the release date and the days after it. |
| Notes to editors | Add background and the link to the media pack. | Nothing in them that the approver has not seen. |
Listed organisations and price-sensitive news. If the organisation’s securities trade on a market, its market disclosure rules come before the press release. In the UK, Article 17(1) of the UK Market Abuse Regulation requires an issuer to make inside information that directly concerns it public as soon as possible, in a way that allows fast access and a complete, correct and timely assessment, and says it must not combine that disclosure with the marketing of its activities. Article 17(8) adds that if the issuer, or someone acting for it, discloses inside information to a third party in the normal course of the discloser’s employment, profession or duties, it must be made public at the same time, or promptly if the disclosure was not intentional, unless the person receiving it owes a duty of confidentiality, whether under law, regulations, articles of association or a contract. In the US, Regulation FD (17 CFR Part 243), which applies to companies with securities registered with the SEC or that must file reports with it, other than foreign private issuers, says that when an issuer, or someone acting for it, discloses material nonpublic information to market professionals or to holders of its securities likely to trade on it, it must make the information public at the same time if the disclosure is intentional, or promptly if not (§ 243.100); public disclosure means a Form 8-K or another method reasonably designed to give broad, non-exclusionary distribution to the public (§ 243.101(e)). Elsewhere, follow your own disclosure rules. In every case the checklist sends the text to whoever owns market disclosure before it goes anywhere, and the Investor Communication & Reporting Framework Checklist covers reporting to investors. This is a summary, not legal advice.
Sources. UK MAR Article 17 on legislation.gov.uk, which shows it up to date to 22 October 2026 and lists its revocation by the Financial Services and Markets Act 2023 as a change not yet in force; Regulation FD, 17 CFR Part 243, on the eCFR.
Embargoes. An embargo is a request that journalists do not publish before a set date and time. It only works with journalists who have agreed to it, so send the release early only to them, put the date, time and time zone at the top, and decide in advance what you will do if someone publishes early.
Enter the release date and every task falls due a set number of working days before or after it; if the date moves, change it once and every due date moves with it. Tasks are assigned from the people named in the first task, overdue alerts go to the assignees, and releases in progress show on the Reports Grid with their answers. Tables keep the media list, the fact sources, the approvals and the coverage in one place.
Another organisation named or quoted adds a task for its written approval. A listed organisation adds a task to send the text to whoever owns market disclosure, with notes on the UK and US rules, and a decision that the news must be announced first adds that step on the release day. An embargo, a wire service, an interview request and an error in the coverage each add their own tasks, and every fact check records No concerns or Concerns found.
The approver signs off the final text after the legal review, the spokespeople and any other organisation or disclosure owner have seen it. Nothing after that approval step can be completed until it is recorded, so no embargoed copy, wire booking or email to the media list goes out first.
CheckFlow is not a media database or a wire service, and it does not track coverage for you. Your team uses its own tools for those. CheckFlow makes sure every release is fact-checked, approved and sent the same way, with the approvals on record. Workflow software shows how hand-offs like these run across a team.
Plan the wider launch with the Product Launch Checklist or the Campaign Launch Checklist, keep logos and images in order with the Brand Asset Management Checklist and publish the newsroom post with the Blog Post Publishing Checklist. Creator posts about the same news run through the Influencer Campaign Checklist, and each quarter the Social Media Audit Checklist checks every account the brand runs. A statement during a crisis belongs in your Crisis Management Plan Checklist.
Describe the process in a sentence and the AI checklist generator drafts the phases and tasks for you.
The news angle and why it matters now; the audience and a target media list; every fact and figure with its source, checked; spokespeople and quotes they have approved; the headline, a first paragraph that answers who, what, when, where and why, the body, the boilerplate and the media contact; images with rights cleared, logos and working links; a legal review, written approval from any other organisation named, and the market disclosure owner if the organisation is listed; sign-off of the final text; the embargo terms if you use one; distribution to journalists, a wire service, your newsroom page and social channels; media enquiries and interviews; coverage tracking and a short review.
There is no single required format, but most releases follow the same order: a release line (“For immediate release” or an embargo line), a headline and an optional subheading, a dateline with the place and date, a first paragraph that answers who, what, when, where and why, the body in order of importance with one or two quotes, an end mark such as “Ends”, the boilerplate about the organisation, the media contact and notes to editors with a link to the images. The table above sets out what to check in each part.
A request that journalists do not publish before a set date and time, so they can prepare a story in advance. It only works with journalists who have agreed to it, so ask first, send the release only to those who agree, put “Embargoed until” with the date, time and time zone at the top and in the email subject, and decide in advance what you will do if someone publishes early. A listed organisation should not send price-sensitive news to anyone under embargo without its disclosure owner’s agreement.
Each spokesperson approves their own quote and reads the final text. A legal or compliance reviewer checks the claims, comparisons and anything said about others. Any other organisation named or quoted approves the text in writing, and a listed organisation’s disclosure owner decides whether the news is price sensitive. One approver, usually the communications lead or director, then signs off the final text, and nothing is sent until they have.
Get it in writing before the release goes out. Send them the full text, not only their quote, and ask them to approve the wording, the use of their logo and the release date. Many organisations have their own approval process, which can take longer than yours, so ask early. If they are listed, they may need to check the text with their own disclosure owner too.
Then the market disclosure rules come first, and the text goes to whoever owns market disclosure before anyone outside sees it. In the UK, Article 17 of the UK Market Abuse Regulation says an issuer must make inside information public as soon as possible and must not combine that disclosure with the marketing of its activities. In the US, Regulation FD says material nonpublic information shared with market professionals or with holders of its securities likely to trade on it must be made public at the same time, or promptly if the sharing was not intentional. The Investor Communication & Reporting Framework Checklist covers reporting to investors. This is not legal advice.
It depends on the news and the audience. A wire service sends the release to a wide list of outlets and websites at a set time, which helps when you need broad reach. It does not replace a short list of journalists who cover the subject and get a personal email. If you use one, check its proof word for word against the approved text. A listed organisation follows its disclosure rules on how the news is first made public.
Log each piece as it appears: the outlet, the date, the link and whether it carried the key message, a spokesperson or your link, including pieces from outlets that were not on your list. Ask politely for factual errors to be corrected, with the right fact and its source. Then compare the coverage with what the release set out to achieve, and write down what to change for the next release.
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