Why articles don't get published

We're a friendly bunch at Behind the Spin.

We welcome ideas and articles - and even enjoy receiving some press releases.

But not every article submitted appears on the site.

Here are the top reasons why articles don't get published:

• It's not original (part 1). Please don't publish your piece on your blog first, then send it to us. Like most publications, we prefer original content. If we do publish the same article, then we open the door to detailed scrutiny of those changes we often make to make an article more readable. No editor wants this (we're not Wikipedia).
• It's not original (part 2). This is more subjective. We frequently receive articles on the same themes (finding placements, choosing PR courses etc). While we're happy to publish several, we prefer to publish those that say something original - or which simply make us smile.
• It's not original (part 3). If we ask you to research some opinions to add 'colour' to your feature, we expect real words attributable to real people. Not links to anonymous websites.
• It's good, but it's not clever. This is the most difficult one to explain to students. We receive some articles that are heartfelt and well-written. Yet we sometimes won't publish them if we judge it against that student's best interests. For exampe, a whinge against your placement employer could leave a big black mark against your Google searches visible to all future employers. Yes, it's a form of censorship, but we're trying to help.
• Is it legal? We have never had any correspondence with lawyers on this magazine - and we hope to keep it that way. We almost certainly don't have copyright permission to use that photograph of a celebrity you've sent us with your article. If in doubt, we'll leave it out. And the lack of original photography makes a celebrity-focused feature much less appealing to readers.
• It lacks a voice. It's true we teach you to write in an objective way in your academic essays, building your argument based on referenced reliable sources. But we're not an academic publication. We want to hear voices and listen to real opinions. Bland objective pieces complete with academic references belong elsewhere.