Five copy-paste prompts written for actual day-to-day work. Each names the recommended tool and the expected output shape.
Source-vetting summary
Recommended tool · Perplexity · Intermediate
You are assisting a journalist. Vet the source below for [story / report / project]. Output: who they are and how they'd know what they claim, why they might be reliable on this topic, why they might be unreliable, what corroborating sources I should pull, and three questions I should ask them in interview. Source description:
[paste here]
Expected output shape
A source-vetting brief with reliability assessment and interview questions.
Cold outreach email
Recommended tool · Claude · Intermediate
Draft a cold outreach email a journalist would send to [recipient role / type] about [topic / ask]. Open with a real reason this person, not just a real-sounding one. State the ask in one sentence. Make the path forward easy (specific, low-effort first step). End with an out — make it clear they can pass without it being awkward. Under 150 words.
Expected output shape
A short, specific outreach email ready to personalize and send.
Decision-memo synthesis
Recommended tool · Claude · Intermediate
Synthesize the discussion below into a decision memo a journalist would circulate. Cover: the question we're deciding, the constraints/criteria, the options on the table with one-line trade-offs each, the recommendation with reasoning, and what we'd need to revisit if [trigger condition]. Keep under 400 words. Don't add data not in the source. Source:
[paste here]
Expected output shape
A decision memo ready to circulate or pin to the project doc.
Recurring-task template
Any general LLM · Beginner
Build a template a journalist would use for [recurring deliverable — weekly report, status update, briefing doc]. Include: the standing sections, what goes in each one, the editorial cadence, the inputs needed and where to find them, and one quality check before sending. Plain markdown.
Expected output shape
A reusable template ready to drop into the role's standard workflow.
Stakeholder update email
Recommended tool · Gemini · Beginner
Draft a stakeholder update email a journalist would send to [audience]. Cover: top-line in 2 sentences, what's done since last update, what's in flight, what risks have emerged, what decisions you need from them, and what they'll see next and when. Tone: confident, concrete, no jargon. Under 250 words.