I'm waiting for the pitch

We get a lot of guest pitches- a lot of guest pitches.

Does the pitch need to be personally addressed to the producer or the program to have a chance to be booked? Yes. And No.

A book addressed to me is going to get opened, just like a book addressed to the program or the station.

If the cover letter is addressed directly to me, that gets noticed; but sometimes if its just mail-merged onto a generic pitch, that gets noticed too.

On the other hand, if the cover letter is addressed to me, and it includes specific reasons why the booking is suitable for my unique audience, it tells me the publicist has put some thought into it, and gets it.

A pitch that doesn't come addressed to me won't be eliminated, not by any stretch. It just needs to stand on its own merits. The guest has to be good – that means a recognized expert, and/or a house hold name. The pitch itself needs to be complete in the other components. Good outline of the topic, strong media resume (other appearances/interviews), talking points.

One publicist copies me on most of her email pitches, even though she knows most of them will not work for our program. But when she has one that she believes is a fit, and years of experience tell me she had good instincts when she thinks its a fit, she will put my name in the subject line of the email; assuring that I open it, and give it a good look.