How to send a press release in Costa Rica (and to which media)

A good press release can take news from your company, institution or organization to newspapers, radio stations and TV channels across the country. Most, however, end up unread in an inbox. This guide explains how to write one a newsroom can use, how to send it, and which Costa Rican outlets to send it to by topic and region.

1. Before you write: is it news?

Newsrooms receive many press releases a day and pick the ones that serve their audience. Ask yourself:

Is it new? A launch, an opening, a figure, an appointment or a dated event.
Who cares about it? If it affects a community, a canton or a sector, that is your audience, and also your outlet.
Are there facts or people? Figures, quotes and photos make a story publishable.

If the honest answer is “only us”, you are better off investing in advertising than in a press release.

2. How a press release is structured

Headline: one sentence with the news, no adjectives. “Cooperative opens collection center in Upala”, not “Big celebration for our family”.
Place and date at the start of the first paragraph: “San Carlos, October 17, 2026”.
First paragraph: what happened, who, when, where and why. If the journalist reads only this, they should have the whole story.
Body: details, figures and context, from most to least important.
A quote from a named person with their title, adding opinion or context rather than repeating the headline.
About the organization: two or three lines at the end.
Press contact: name, phone and email of someone who will answer the same day.

One page is enough. If you need more, the story probably calls for a press conference or an interview, not a release.

3. How to send it

Paste the text into the body of the email. Many newsrooms don’t open attachments from unknown senders. If you attach a PDF, make it a copy.
A clear subject line: use the headline, not “Press release”.
Light photos with credits: two or three landscape images with the photographer’s name, or a link to download them in high resolution.
To the right address: almost every outlet publishes its newsroom or section email under “Contacto” on its site. Look it up on each outlet’s page; the profiles in this directory link to each official site.
No visible lists: if you send it to several outlets, use blind copy (BCC) or send it one by one. A personal greeting helps.
With time to spare: for events, send it several days ahead and send a reminder the day before.

Most Costa Rican outlets publish in Spanish, so send your release in Spanish unless you are writing to an English-language outlet.

4. Which outlets to send it to

Choose by topic and by where the news happens. Ten outlets that publish it are worth more than a hundred that ignore it.

General national news

La Nación, CRHoy, Diario Extra, La Teja, El Observador, AmeliaRueda.com, Delfino, El Mundo CR, Teletica · Canal 7, Repretel · Canales 6, 11, 4 y 2, Telediario · Multimedios Canal 8, Radio Monumental and Radio Columbia.

Economy, companies and business

El Financiero, La República, EKA and Revista Summa. They work well with data: investment, jobs created, results, rankings.

Environment, food and sports

Environment and climate: Ojo al Clima. Food, hospitality and tourism: Revista Apetito. Sports: FUTV.

Science, culture and education

University media make room for research, culture and social issues: Semanario Universidad, Quince UCR, Radioemisoras UCR and Onda UNED.

English-language media

For tourism, foreign investment or news of interest to foreign residents: The Tico Times, Q Costa Rica, AM Costa Rica and The Costa Rica News. Send your release in English. See the guide to English-language news in Costa Rica.

Regional media

For community news, regional outlets are often the best choice: they know the area, and their audience is exactly yours.

Each region has its own guide (in Spanish) on what each outlet covers and how to choose.

5. Follow-up

A short email or call a day or two later, to offer an interview or more photos, is reasonable. Insisting several times is not. If an outlet publishes your story, thank them and share it on your social media: that is how you build a relationship for next time.

6. Common mistakes

Promotional headlines (“the best”, “leader”, “innovative”).
Sending the same text to every outlet without thinking about whether it interests their audience.
Not answering the contact phone when a journalist calls.
Heavy photos, without credits, or portrait-format photos for a print outlet.
Demanding that it be published “as is”: a press release is working material for the journalist.

7. A note on personal data

If you build a list of press contacts, remember that Law 8968 on the Protection of Individuals with regard to the Processing of their Personal Data (2011) governs the handling of personal data in Costa Rica. The simplest approach is to use the newsroom emails each outlet publishes, not to buy third-party lists, and to remove anyone who asks from your list.

Looking for a specific outlet? Use the directory of Costa Rican media, with filters by type and province. And if you are planning paid space instead, see how much advertising costs in Costa Rica.