By Jordan Baker, Founder of Fair Public Relations and former UK national journalist
A journalist is working to a 4pm deadline on a feature about conflict in long-term relationships. They do not need a therapist to send a brochure about appointments, repeat a company mission statement or explain every modality they have ever studied. They need two or three accurate sentences that help a reader understand the issue, from somebody whose qualifications and experience make them an appropriate source.
That is the basic route into the media for therapists. A counsellor, psychotherapist, psychologist or other suitably qualified mental-health professional can become useful to journalists by being precise about their credentials and scope, choosing a small number of subjects they genuinely understand, preparing clear evidence-informed explanations, responding promptly and protecting client confidentiality. The job is not to diagnose readers or public figures, and no amount of preparation can guarantee publication.
For therapists interested in a broader campaign, our Therapy PR service explains how Fair Public Relations approaches earned media for qualified mental-health professionals. The practical starting point, however, is understanding what the journalist actually needs.
What exactly does a journalist need from a therapist?
Therapists can appear in journalism in several different ways, and each format creates a different demand on the expert. A reporter writing a fast news story may need 80 useful words within an hour. A magazine feature writer may arrange a 30-minute interview several days ahead. A radio producer may want somebody who can explain one idea clearly in a live three-minute segment. A podcast host may want a longer conversation where nuance matters more than a perfect soundbite.
| Media opportunity | What the journalist may need | Typical preparation | What makes the therapist suitable |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reactive written quote | Two to four concise, attributable sentences | Check the question, source material and deadline | Directly relevant expertise and fast availability |
| Pre-planned interview | Context, examples and a clear professional view | Review the angle, likely questions and evidence | Relevant experience and ability to explain it naturally |
| Longer magazine feature | Nuance, practical explanation and sometimes several examples | More detailed briefing and factual checking | Strong subject fit and enough depth for sustained questioning |
| Radio or TV contribution | Short, accurate, repeatable explanations | Key points, facts to hand, technical/audio checks | Clear delivery as well as relevant credentials |
| Podcast | Sustained discussion and personal professional perspective | Topic map and boundaries rather than scripted answers | Genuine depth and comfort with a longer conversation |
None of these is the same as a paid endorsement. In earned editorial coverage, the journalist and editor control whether the contribution appears and how it is used. A therapist may provide excellent material and still not be included because the story changes, the editor cuts the section or another source is a better fit. That independence is part of what makes genuine coverage valuable.
From my own time as a journalist, the best expert sources were rarely the people who tried hardest to promote themselves. They were the people who understood the question quickly, gave an answer that could stand on its own and made it easy to verify why they were qualified to say it.
That is also the principle behind our broader guide to how journalists choose experts to quote.
Start by deciding whether you are actually qualified for the topic
“Therapist” is not one universal professional status. The titles, registration systems and legal rules around counselling, psychotherapy and psychology vary between the UK, the US and other jurisdictions, and even within the US licensing is generally state-based.
That means a media biography should describe what somebody actually is, not choose the most impressive title that sounds broadly related.
In the UK, the Health and Care Professions Council regulates certain protected practitioner psychologist titles, while organisations such as BACP operate professional membership and accreditation systems for counsellors and psychotherapists. Those are not interchangeable statuses. HCPC's current standards of conduct, performance and ethics require registrants to remain within their scope, protect privacy and communicate responsibly. The BACP Ethical Framework applies its current 2026 framework to members from 3rd November 2026.
In the US, a psychologist's title and ability to practise depend on the relevant state law and licence. The American Psychological Association's current guidance on working with the media also tells psychologists to represent their expertise accurately when dealing with journalists rather than implying competence outside their real area.
A useful credentials audit therefore asks:
What is your exact professional title?
Which qualifications are relevant to this subject?
Are you registered, licensed, accredited or simply a member of a professional body, and which term is accurate?
In which country or state do you practise?
What is your actual area of clinical or professional experience?
How long have you worked in that area, if the figure can be verified?
Which subjects are clearly inside your scope, and which would be better handled by another professional?
Which primary sources or evidence can you use when discussing the subject?
Consider three fictional descriptions.
Accurate: “Priya Shah is an accredited relationship counsellor in private practice in Manchester, with 11 years' experience working with adult couples and individuals on communication, conflict and relationship transitions.”
Vague: “Priya Shah is a mental-health expert who helps people transform their relationships.”
Overstated: “Dr Priya Shah is one of the UK's leading psychologists and can diagnose all relationship and mental-health problems.”
The first tells a journalist what Priya actually does. The second gives very little evidence. The third invents or exaggerates status and scope unless every part is independently true.
Counsellor, psychotherapist, psychologist, coach and psychiatrist are not synonyms
A journalist may use several kinds of source in a story about wellbeing or relationships, but the role should be described accurately.
A counsellor or psychotherapist may have extensive professional training and experience in talking therapies, with their professional status depending on the jurisdiction and relevant registration, accreditation or membership system. A psychologist may hold a regulated or licensed professional title depending on the country and role. A psychiatrist is a medically trained doctor specialising in psychiatry and has a different scope, including medical diagnosis and prescribing responsibilities where appropriate. A coach may have useful non-clinical expertise but should not be presented as a therapist merely because the subjects overlap.
There is no sensible reason to flatten all of these roles into “mental-health expert”.
Good media relations makes the source more precise, not less.
Our guide to what makes someone a credible media expert develops this point beyond therapy, but the principle is particularly important where health information is involved.
Choose a media comment menu, not fifty subjects
A common mistake is to make an expert profile so broad that it becomes unconvincing.
Imagine a relationship therapist whose genuine work centres on adult relationships. A strong comment menu might contain:
managing disagreement without escalating conflict;
communication under pressure, including stressful family periods;
common relationship myths and unhelpful expectations.
Those topics are clear enough that a journalist can understand where the therapist fits, but broad enough to create several media opportunities.
The same person might reasonably decline or redirect requests to diagnose a celebrity from their public behaviour, comment on psychiatric medication, advise on child psychiatry, give a clinical opinion on a person they have never assessed, or make a claim about treating a condition outside their actual professional remit.
The point is to become reliably useful. A journalist who learns that you give thoughtful answers within a defined area can come back repeatedly, while a source who says yes to everything may eventually undermine their own credibility.
Find the reader question before writing the pitch
Journalists do not normally start with the objective:
“How can I promote this therapist?”
They start with something their audience may care about.
That might be a new study on loneliness, a seasonal rise in relationship stress, a workplace story about boundaries, a celebrity news event that raises a general social question, or an evergreen feature about communication.
The therapist's job is to contribute to the reader's question without pretending the article is a therapy session.
There are two broad routes.
Time-sensitive opportunities
These arise because something has happened now: new research, a public survey, a policy change, a seasonal moment or a genuine news trend.
The therapist should read the underlying source where possible rather than commenting on another outlet's headline. If a study found an association, do not call it proof of causation. If the sample is narrow, do not turn it into a claim about every couple or every patient.
Evergreen expertise
These are subjects that remain useful over time, such as communication, boundaries, relationship expectations, emotional regulation or help-seeking.
Evergreen does not mean generic. “Five mental-health tips” is weak because it could come from almost anybody. “Why some couples mistake avoiding arguments for healthy communication” gives the expert a more specific proposition to explain.
In both cases, a useful PR angle usually comes from three elements working together: a real fact or question, clear relevance to the publication's audience and a human consequence the therapist can explain responsibly.
Turn specialist language into an editor-ready explanation
Therapists often work with nuanced concepts and precise professional terminology. That language may be necessary in clinical notes, supervision or academic discussion, but a journalist may need a paragraph that an ordinary reader understands immediately.
Consider this fictional comment.
Jargon-heavy version
“Dyadic conflict can become reinforced through reciprocal negative attribution cycles in which each partner's defensive affective response functions as a stimulus for the other's maladaptive coping behaviour.”
The idea may be legitimate, but it is difficult to quote.
Editor-ready version
“Arguments often become repetitive because both people start reacting not just to the issue in front of them, but to what they expect the other person is about to do. One becomes defensive, the other pushes harder, and the pattern itself starts driving the conflict. That does not diagnose either partner with a problem, but it can explain why the same disagreement keeps returning.”
The second version still has nuance. It avoids diagnosing an individual and it works as a standalone passage.
A good journalist quote usually needs to do three things: answer the question, make sense without a paragraph of technical setup, and remain accurate when the surrounding article is edited.
If the comment relies on research, include a link to the original paper or authoritative source in the material sent to the journalist. Do not bury the source under ten marketing links.
How do you find the right journalists and publications?
Start with the topic, not a giant media database.
A therapist specialising in relationships may be relevant to features, relationships, lifestyle and selected health journalists. A psychologist working in occupational mental health may be more useful to workplace, business and health desks. A practitioner whose work is strongly local may have a legitimate role in regional media. A well-qualified specialist may also fit professional or trade publications.
UK and US journalists may use different terminology, professional titles and legal frameworks, so localisation needs to go beyond changing spelling.
Read recent work. Ask whether this person actually covers the subject, whether they use outside experts, whether the article format is compatible with the contribution you can offer, whether the geographic market is relevant and whether the expert's title makes sense to this readership.
Mass emailing irrelevant journalists can do more harm than good because it teaches them that your future messages probably will not be worth opening.
Direct journalist relationships are built through relevance and reliability, not through claiming that somebody is on an agency's “media list”.
What should the first therapist pitch contain?
A first pitch does not need to contain the therapist's entire career.
It needs enough information for the journalist to decide whether the source is useful.
Here is an illustrative example.
Subject: Relationship therapist comment: why avoiding arguments can make conflict harder to resolve
Hi Anna,
Following new survey data showing that many couples say they avoid difficult conversations to “keep the peace”, accredited relationship counsellor Priya Shah can explain why the absence of arguments does not necessarily mean a relationship is communicating well.
Priya has 11 years' experience working with adult couples and individuals on communication and relationship conflict.
She says:
“Some couples avoid disagreement because conflict feels unsafe or exhausting, but that can leave the original problem unresolved. Healthy communication is not about never disagreeing. It is about being able to express a difference without turning the other person into the enemy.”
The survey source is here: [source].
Priya is available for a short phone interview or further written comment today.
Kind regards,
[contact]
The person and survey are fictional. The useful structure is a news hook, exact professional relevance, an immediately usable comment, evidence and availability.
Fair generally prefers declarative, news-led subject lines rather than questions or exaggerated all-caps headlines. The aim is to help the journalist recognise the story quickly.
What should you do when a journalist asks for a comment?
A journalist request can look deceptively simple:
“Can your therapist comment on why people stay in unhappy relationships? Deadline 2pm.”
Before answering, clarify enough to be safe and useful.
Confirm the topic, deadline, publication and expected format. Check exactly how the therapist should be attributed, including country, title and professional status. Review any research or public claim the journalist is referring to. Decide whether the question falls inside scope. Then prepare two or three genuinely quotable lines and only as much supporting explanation as is needed.
If the therapist has a relevant commercial relationship or other conflict, disclose it where appropriate.
If the journalist requests a photograph, send an approved professional image with correct credit information rather than searching for whatever happens to be on social media.
Most importantly, do not compromise confidentiality in the rush to answer.
Health information is treated as special category data under UK data-protection law, and the Information Commissioner's Office guidance on special category data explains that this type of data requires additional protection. Professional ethical duties can go further depending on the person's status and jurisdiction.
The practical rule is simple: the deadline never makes a private client story suddenly public.
On the record, off the record and background need explicit agreement
People sometimes use “off the record” as if it is a magic phrase that can be applied after revealing something sensitive.
It is not.
Journalistic conventions differ. The Associated Press's editorial principles explicitly note that “off the record” and “background” are not universally understood in exactly the same way and recommend agreeing ground rules before the interview.
If something genuinely must not be published, establish the terms before saying it, and remember that no media convention overrides your own professional duty not to disclose confidential information in the first place.
What should therapists refuse to comment on?
Therapists can be highly useful sources while still saying no to some requests.
A simple decision process is:
Accept when the subject clearly falls within your professional competence, can be discussed accurately and does not require confidential information.
Modify when the journalist's framing is too broad but a safer and still useful version is possible.
Decline when the request asks you to diagnose a person you have not assessed, comment outside your competence, reveal client details or make unsupported treatment claims.
Example: public-figure diagnosis
Request: “Can you diagnose why this celebrity keeps choosing controlling partners?”
Decision: Decline or modify.
A therapist could potentially discuss, in general terms, why outsiders should be cautious about diagnosing relationship dynamics from public information. They should not diagnose the celebrity.
Example: unsupported treatment claim
Request: “Can you say therapy X cures anxiety?”
Decision: Decline or reframe around the actual evidence and professional scope.
Example: general communication question
Request: “Why can couples become more irritable during periods of financial pressure?”
Decision: Potentially accept if this is genuinely within the therapist's expertise.
For BACP members, the current ethical framework applies to professional practice, while HCPC registrants must follow the standards relevant to their registration. US psychologists working with media also have profession-specific ethical responsibilities. These frameworks differ, so a general PR article should never be treated as a substitute for the rules that actually bind the individual practitioner.
Client examples require exceptional care
A therapist does not need to tell journalists about identifiable clients to be a credible media source.
In fact, many of the strongest expert comments do not need a case history at all.
BACP's guidance on social media and client privacy warns that details which appear harmless in isolation can combine to identify a client.
Changing a name is therefore not automatically enough.
A story that describes “a 38-year-old television producer from a small town in Kent whose husband left after 17 years of marriage” might be recognisable even without a name.
Consent can also be more complicated than obtaining a quick yes. The professional relationship, vulnerability, future consequences of publicity and the practitioner's own ethical rules all matter.
Fair's normal preference in therapist expert-commentary work is to build media material around the professional's general expertise, public evidence and appropriate hypothetical explanations rather than treating current clients as marketing assets.
Preparing for radio, podcasts and television
Broadcast contributions require the same professional boundaries as written journalism, but the delivery changes.
A therapist should know the programme, whether the segment is live or recorded, approximately how long it is, whether other guests are involved and which subject areas the producer expects to cover.
For remote interviews, basic practical preparation matters: stable internet, appropriate microphone or headphones, good lighting for video, a quiet room and a professional background.
Keep the exact professional title available so the producer can caption the therapist accurately.
Prepare three key points and a small number of checked statistics or sources. Avoid memorising a speech.
If a presenter asks something outside scope, say so and bridge back to what you can responsibly explain.
Our separate media interview preparation guide covers this in much more detail, including difficult questions, readbacks and one-page briefing packs.
A realistic 30-day self-start plan
A therapist can begin media preparation without hiring an agency.
The purpose of this plan is to become ready, not to promise that a newspaper will quote you within 30 days.
| Week | Main task | Practical output | When not to pitch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Verify credentials and scope | Accurate title, qualification list, three media subjects | If your public profiles contradict your claimed status |
| Week 2 | Build media materials | Short bio, headshot, topic menu, source list | If client information is mixed into public media files |
| Week 3 | Monitor relevant news and features | Two to four individually relevant pitches only where a real angle exists | If you are forcing your expertise into unrelated news |
| Week 4 | Follow up and learn | Log replies, refine angle, update contacts | If the journalist has clearly said no or the story has passed |
The number of pitches is illustrative, not a quota. A therapist with one strong, timely idea should not manufacture four weak ones because a table says so.
The same applies to follow-up. A polite, relevant follow-up can be reasonable. Repeatedly chasing somebody who has declined is unlikely to build the kind of journalist goodwill a long-term campaign needs.
Real therapy PR evidence: Cambridge Therapy Centre
Fair's historical work with Cambridge Therapy Centre shows what sustained expert positioning can look like when the credentials and subject fit are strong.
The six-month case study records more than 30 published media opportunities across national, lifestyle, health and specialist publications, including The Independent, Daily Mail, Yahoo and Saga. Founder Christine Schneider was positioned through her qualifications and experience as a clinical psychologist and psychotherapist, contributing informed commentary on mental health, relationships and human behaviour.
The important lesson is not “30 articles in six months is normal”. It is that a qualified therapist can contribute repeatedly without exposing private client material or turning every article into an advert for appointments.
Those results belong to that campaign and do not predict what another practice will achieve.
Real therapy PR evidence: Charisse Cooke
Our Charisse Cooke case study provides a second example.
The six-month case study records 26 published media opportunities around relationships, dating, communication and everyday emotional challenges. The recorded coverage includes outlets such as MailOnline, Metro, The Independent, Daily Mirror, Glamour, GQ, HuffPost UK, ITV, SheerLuxe and Refinery29.
Again, these are campaign-specific historical results, not a guarantee. They demonstrate the breadth of subjects for which relevant relationship expertise can be useful to journalists.
They also illustrate a point that matters for therapy practices: third-party media can provide public evidence of professional expertise without relying on patient testimonials.
Does media coverage automatically create enquiries?
No.
A published article may produce referral traffic, prompt somebody to search the therapist's name or become a useful trust signal when a referred prospect checks the practice, but those outcomes still need to be measured separately.
Whether any of that results in an enquiry depends on the audience, the article, the practice website, availability, geography, fees, the prospective client's needs and many other factors.
Fair deliberately separates media result from business result. That makes the reporting more credible.
The same principle applies to SEO, AI search and backlinks. Those can be relevant benefits to examine, but none should be promised as an automatic consequence of being quoted.
Should a therapist do PR themselves or use an agency?
DIY media outreach can work well for a therapist who has clear credentials, time to monitor relevant news, confidence writing concise pitches, fast availability and a small number of well-defined subjects.
A useful press kit for journalists can make the process easier, although a media kit is not a substitute for having an actual story.
For eligible professionals whose main objective is to contribute specialist expertise to journalism, Fair's narrower Expert Commentary PR service is currently £397 per month in the UK, US$497 in the US and CAD$747 in Canada. It covers managed expert-commentary research, writing, journalist pitching and follow-up, not general publicity for the wider practice.
Our broader Standard PR service is currently £797 per month in the UK, US$997 in the US and CAD$1,497 in Canada, and is designed for wider account-managed campaigns where there are genuine business, founder, service or other editorial stories alongside expertise.
Both services currently have an initial three-month commitment followed by one full billing cycle's notice. Neither guarantees publication, links or enquiry volumes.
Therapist media-readiness checklist
Before approaching a journalist, you should be able to answer yes to most of the following:
Is my professional title exactly accurate for my jurisdiction?
Can a journalist verify my relevant qualifications, licence, registration or accreditation?
Have I chosen three or four subjects I genuinely understand?
Do I know which subjects I should decline?
Is my public website biography consistent with the pitch?
Do I have a current professional headshot with permission for editorial use?
Can I explain my subject in plain English without diagnosing the reader?
Do I have primary or reputable sources for important factual claims?
Can I respond within realistic media deadlines?
Is all client material kept entirely separate from media outreach unless there is a properly reviewed, legitimate reason to use it?
Have I identified publications that genuinely cover my subject?
Can I accept that the journalist controls the final article?
If several of those answers are no, the most useful first step may be preparation rather than pitching.
Frequently asked questions
Do therapists need to be registered psychologists to get quoted?
No. Journalists may use appropriately qualified counsellors, psychotherapists, psychologists and other mental-health professionals where the person's genuine training and experience fit the subject. What matters is accurate description and appropriate scope. A BACP membership or accreditation, an HCPC registration and a US state psychologist licence are different professional statuses and should not be treated as interchangeable. The therapist should use the exact title they are entitled to use and avoid implying a regulated or licensed status they do not hold.
Can I talk to journalists about client examples?
Sometimes generalised or genuinely safe examples may be possible, but confidentiality and professional obligations come first. Removing a client's name does not necessarily prevent identification because combinations of age, location, occupation, family circumstances and other details can identify somebody. BACP, HCPC, data-protection rules and US professional requirements can create different obligations depending on the practitioner. As a default PR approach, it is usually safer to explain general principles, public evidence or clearly labelled hypothetical examples than to recruit current therapy clients into publicity.
Does being quoted in a newspaper mean patients will book with me?
No. Being quoted proves that a journalist used your contribution. It may increase awareness, send referral traffic, strengthen a prospective client's impression when they research you or add third-party evidence of your expertise, but none of those outcomes guarantees a booking. Enquiries depend on many factors beyond PR, including the audience, geography, website quality, fees, availability and whether the practice is appropriate for that person's needs.
Is Expert Commentary PR the same as promoting a private therapy practice?
No. Fair's Expert Commentary PR is a narrower service for eligible individual specialists whose genuine expertise can be useful to journalists. It is focused on expert media contributions and does not include broad practice promotion, service launches or general company publicity. Standard PR is the broader option where a practice has several genuine campaign routes. Some therapists may be better suited to DIY preparation first, and no service guarantees that journalists will publish a particular quote.
Could your therapy expertise be useful to journalists?
If you have credible specialist experience and want to explore whether journalists could use it, our Therapy PR page explains how Fair approaches earned media for therapists, counsellors, psychotherapists and suitable mental-health professionals.
We can explain when Expert Commentary PR is appropriate, when broader Standard PR may make more sense, and when improving your own media materials should come first.
You can tell us about your qualifications, subjects and goals. We will not promise a particular publication or a fixed number of quotes.
About the author
Jordan Baker is the founder of Fair Public Relations and a former UK national journalist with more than a decade of journalism and PR experience. He works with founders, experts and small businesses on journalist-led earned-media campaigns, with a particular focus on turning genuine expertise into material that working reporters can actually use.
View Jordan Baker’s media expert profile
