Finding contacts and outlets through filter and natural language search

AI PR Toolkit’s Media Database helps you find journalists and outlets based on their beats and recent publications. Filter search is a quick way to explore who’s writing about what to start building targeted contact lists.

When to use filter search

This feature is useful when you want to:

• Identify outlets and journalists whose recent content contains specific topics
• Explore the media before starting outreach
• Understand what’s trending in your industry
• Build or expand your media list based on recent coverage

How to create a media list when you’ve already created one

If you already have at least one list, go to Media Lists and click Create list in the top-right corner.

Then:

1. Enter list name and click Save list.
2. Add contacts in the following ways:

• Find contacts in the media database by using filter or natural language search
• Add manually by entering contact details yourself
• Import contacts by uploading your existing list

How to create media lists when you’ve deleted previous ones

1. In Media Lists, click Create media list.
2. Enter list name and Save list.
3. Follow the same two entry points to add contacts as in the previous workflow.

How to add contacts to your media list

You can add contacts by importing or searching:

• Filter search
  • Use Journalist or Outlets toggle for easy switching
  • Type the name of a person or outlet to find someone specific & use filters to narrow down results
  • Filter by topic, region, country, city, role, media type, or targeted audience

Note: Topics come from the IPTC Media Topics taxonomy — the hierarchical standard used across the news industry — so you can filter by the same subject categories journalists and publishers use to tag their content. Use top-level categories for broader searches and lower-level ones for more specific results. You can either tick the checkboxes or simply type in the topic you're looking for. Hover over any topic to see exactly what it covers.

• Natural language search
  • Search naturally by describing who you are looking for. Using keywords, countries, brands, sentiment, people, products, key phrases, or organizations. Examples: “US journalists writing positively about Tesla,” “Sustainable clothing brands in Canada”, “Running shoes reviewers”, etc.
  • We’ll find the best matches from recent articles

Note: Now you can understand every article at a glance by instantly seeing its topics, people, brands, sentiment, and coverage type even without opening it. Review more articles in less time!

• Bulk import from file (CSV, XLS, XLSX):
  • Go to Add contacts > Import from file
  • Map columns, then click Import
  • Learn how to import contacts into it
• Add recommended journalists from the pitch flow:
  • When selecting recipients for a campaign, the AI PR Toolkit recommends journalists based on your brand — for example, contacts who mentioned your brand, cover your competitors, or have high open rates
  • Select the ones you want and click Add to list to save them to an existing list or create a new one.
  • Learn more about selecting and optimizing recipients

After finding the right contacts, select them and click Add to list.

Note: You can add contacts however you like - click the checkbox in the top-left corner of the table to select all, tick individual journalists one by one (multiselect), or click the (+) button next to a contact's name to add them instantly.

Editing existing lists

In a saved media list, you can:

• Find contacts using the list search bar.
• View and edit contact details. 
• Apply filters to view specific types of contacts.
• Remove contacts one by one or in bulk.
• Export selected contacts or entire lists, depending on your plan and export limits.
• Add selected contacts to other media lists directly from this view.

Using filters

1. Open any media list.
2. Just above the list table, you’ll see filter options and counters showing how many Journalists and Outlets match your criteria. 
3. Use the filters to narrow down your list:

• Country
• City
• Topic

You can also toggle between All, Journalists, and Outlets using the tabs above the filters.

4. Click on a filter, select one or more values, and click Apply to confirm.
   Each filter has its own Apply button.

You can combine multiple filters to refine results further.

Using the search bar

Use the search bar to find contacts by journalist name or outlet name.
The search applies only within the currently opened media list.

Clearing filters

Click Clear filters to remove all filters at once. Filters only apply to the current list view and reset when you open another list.