Sending Out an ‘SOS’: Peter Shankman Launches Journalist Source Platform from Hell’s Kitchen

New York media has gained a new hero as Hell’s Kitchen entrepreneur Peter Shankman launches an online platform to connect journalists with sources and story-worthy projects.

SOS, which stands for Source of Sources is a free service for journalists looking for expert sources in a thrice-daily email push. The platform helps reporters working on lightning-fast deadlines, and business owners and subject-matter experts in sharing their stories.

Peter, a longtime Hell’s Kitchen resident who juggles simultaneous careers as a marketing expert, keynote speaker and children’s book author , has assisted W42ST’s reporters on more than one occasion. He’s also familiar with the need to find reputable sources, fast, from years founding America Online’s own newsroom and working in fast-paced PR.

In 2007, he created HARO (Help A Reporter Out), hoping to bridge the gap between journalists and sources in a free, easy-to-use platform. The service was a hit, and in 2010, Peter sold the company to Vocus, Inc (later merged with software company Cision), where it continued until Cision disbanded the free email push function of the service earlier this year.

It was a bittersweet moment for Peter, who initially had only intended to memorialize the platform that made him a media darling in a nostalgic “goodbye” email. “I sent an email to my personal audience, saying, ‘Raise a glass to HARO,’” Peter told W42ST. “And after I sent the email, I took my daughter to school. I got on the subway — and my phone was just buzzing, practically smoking with people responding! In the next five days, I got 2,000 emails from people asking me to build a new one.”

At first, he was hesitant. “I do five different things, there’s other sites, you can’t go home again,” Peter said with a laugh. “But the emails just kept coming.” Despite his best efforts to resist, it soon became clear that he was destined to jump back in. “I was hanging out with my girlfriend, and she goes, ‘What are you going to call it?’ and I’m like, ‘I’m not calling it anything. I’m not doing it!’ I then pulled out my phone and bought a domain,” he said with a sigh.

Peter explained that SOS is a completely new platform that reflects the massive changes to the media landscape over the past two decades, built to help time-starved journalists juggling multiple assignments at once.

“Back in 2007, reporters had to do a lot more with a lot less already — and that’s multiplied probably 20 times [in the years since],” said Peter. “You show me a writer who’s writing for a magazine and they probably have six other gigs as well. They might be doing corporate writing, they might be doing other gigs. Because, unfortunately, the landscape has shifted in such a way that journalism is nowhere near as respected anymore — and I think that’s a shame.”

Having worked as an editor, reporter and in PR, “I have the experience of coming from both backgrounds,” said Peter, who added that he wanted to create a service that benefits everyone. “It is, at its heart, a service that connects journalists with choices they need and it gives sources the opportunity for free to get media attention to help them or their business.”

Peter has vowed to keep SOS reputable, easy-to-use, and free (though if you’d like to “keep the good karma flowing” you can donate to Best Friends Animal Society or The NYC Mayor’s Alliance for Animals ). Its primary platform will always be email rather than app-based. “I had a journalism professor at Boston University who once told me, ‘be brilliant at the basics,’ which is the best piece of advice,” said Peter. “I’m a big believer in email. I’ve  always said it’s the killer app. And I’m not talking about sending out, you know, ‘hey, buy our stuff,’ — I’m talking about creating a service like SOS that can help people. It can get you press, it can get you publicity, which can help increase and improve your business and generate more revenue.”

SOS has already attracted some attention from major players, citing the site’s over 21,000 signups (thus far) and a burgeoning industry partnership with media platform Muck Rack that will help verify and streamline reporter contacts as well as ensure reporters are receiving the right kind of pitches.

And Peter has also gotten enthusiastic reach outs from Hell’s Kitchen locals: “I’ve actually heard some some people who signed up, and then they put two-and-two together: ‘ You’re the dog run guy !’” he laughed. “But for me, the excitement is that I walk up and down 9th Avenue every day, and I see the businesses that are finally starting to come back,” he added.  “We already have requests coming in from major publications. So if you’re a Hell’s Kitchen-based company who’s looking for free press? What better way to grow your business in New York than by getting in the New York media.”

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