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written for the February, 2004 press release.
see also m:How to send a press release.
It is advised, but not really required, that you temporarily change your "From:" name to "Wikimedia PR", to look more official than a random name.
The subject of the e-mail should read "PR: Wikipedia publishes 500,000 articles in 50 languages", which is simple and to the point.
Copy the complete text of the article through your mail program or website. If you have an HTML compatible e-mail send Wikipedia:Press_releases/February_2004, if you have plain text e-mail send Wikipedia:Press_releases/February_2004/Text-Only
No cover letter is need, as these are all being sent by e-mail or snail mail. Just a basic cover letter is acceptable if your local paper wants a fax, for some reason.
Make sure you fully record which press outlets you send to, in the Wikipedia:Press_releases/Logbook.
# Newspaper name, City of publication (if known), State/Province/Region (if relevant), Country, email@email.com (or "through form", if that's the case) : [[User:name]] date
And in response to the "will they take it seriously?" question, yes, most companies hire firms to send their PR out. -- user:zanimum