Media trends: How to get UK press coverage in February

Want to get media coverage in February? Despite being the shortest month of the year, there are still plenty of opportunities to get coverage throughout the month with Valentine’s gift ideas still in demand.

Find out what else journalists are after this month and what they were putting requests in for last month on the ResponseSource Journalist Enquiry Service.

AI back in focus

It’s been a topical issue for the last couple of years now and ‘AI’ has been cropping up on average each month in about 3% of enquiries. However, last month this increased to around 5% of the requests – likely due to the release of the new AI chatbot DeepSeek.

Journalists at IT Pro, The Next Web, The Daily Express, The Grocer, Vogue Business, and Schools Week all sent enquiries in January, looking for information and expert comment on how this new technology will, and currently is, impacting their respective sectors.

Going forward? There is a lot of noise right now about the cost of AI following DeepSeek entering the market. Many journalists will continue to cover this throughout February, likely looking for experts to give their views. If you have clients who cover this, or happen to be an expert yourself, have answers prepared, and you could get coverage in a major trade title or national press.

Winter travel ideas

Travel is usually pretty popular on the Journalist Enquiry Service and the category normally peaks in June. However, January has been a strong month for the category, and ‘travel’ has been a popular keyword. It appeared in 5.5% of the requests last month.

A lot of these enquiries were from journalists looking for travel trends for the year, but there have also been quite a few around Winter travel. This has included one for the world’s most beautiful ski chalet, skiing in Norway, and medium-haul destinations to escape the cold.

Going forward? The half term break for schools is fast approaching and we could see requests for last-minute family holiday breaks. Plus, we are already seeing enquiries about Spring and Summer destinations. Have your travel experts ready to provide comment and get featured in national press titles such as The Sunday Times, Metro, MailOnline, and The Independent.

Changing of the seasons

Many journalists, especially feature writers, are producing content two or three months in advance. That means despite it still being the middle of Winter, there were more requests in January containing the word ‘Spring’ (at just over 2%) than there were ‘Winter’ (2% exactly).
Some of these enquiries were around holidays and occasions, with just under 1% of the requests being for Mother’s Day and just over 1% being for Easter. Other Spring-related requests included tips to get your garden ready for spring, wellness retreats taking place in spring, and the best earbuds/headphones for the season.

Going forward? As the new season draws nearer, journalists’ requests around gardening, skincare and beauty, spring cleaning and home decor, and healthy living, will only increase. Journalists at consumer titles such as Top Sante, Good Homes, Stylist.co.uk, Take a Break, and Ideal Home all sent enquiries last month and are likely to again, so have information ready for them to use.

Other opportunities for PRs in February and beyond

Expect some last-minute requests for Valentine’s Day inspiration and presents, but attention will turn more towards Mother’s Day and Easter. Journalists tend to look for products to reviews or gift ideas, so have these ready.

The whole of February is LGBTQ+ History month and also National Heart Month as well, so if you have experts related to either of these, you could get media coverage this month. World Pizza Day (9 February) is coming up this weekend and Shrove Tuesday (4 March), also known as Pancake Day, is not far away. Journalists will likely be sending requests for interesting recipes or the best places to go, so have information and experts prepared.

For more about how the Journalist Enquiry Service can help you secure coverage in the media, check out this explainer.