HARO (Help a Reporter Out) has sent more than 100 million emails connecting journalists with sources since Featured relaunched the service in April 2025, according to data released today. The milestone offers a snapshot of how AI, spam, and crowded inboxes are reshaping the relationship between journalists and PR professionals.
The statistics reveal that 21% of pitches submitted through HARO are entirely AI-generated, while 35% of journalists now choose to block AI-generated responses when making requests. Additionally, a user is banned every 23 minutes for spam or terms of service violations, and 32% of journalist requests are rejected during the approval process due to quality or legitimacy concerns.
Most notably, human-written pitches are approximately three times more likely to be used by journalists than AI-generated ones. This finding underscores the value of authentic, credible expertise in an era of automated communication.
“Human-written pitches are about 3x more likely to get featured than AI-written ones,” said Brett Farmiloe, CEO of HARO. “The sources who stand out typically come from fully human teams who can provide credible information, respond to what the journalist actually asked for, and make the journalist’s job easier. As inboxes get more crowded, being helpful becomes the differentiator.”
The data points to a growing challenge for PR professionals: even as access to journalists increases, earning their attention becomes harder. Relevance, credibility, and expertise are critical ways for sources to stand out, and AI detection tools like those provided by Pangram are being used to filter out automated pitches.
HARO, which was shut down by its previous owner in December 2024 and relaunched by Featured in April 2025, connects journalists with expert sources through a free newsletter. The service delivers journalist requests directly to subscribers, offering subject matter experts, publicists, and PR professionals opportunities to respond to relevant media inquiries and earn coverage.
As the volume of communication between journalists and sources grows, the data from HARO highlights the importance of human insight and tailored responses in cutting through the noise.
