It requires a nuanced, well-crafted approach to connect with the newspapers' editorial boards.

Consolidation, competition, and declining readership may plague newspapers, but the editorial page still influences opinion leaders and policy-makers.

"There's no shortage of opinion out there, but few bloggers offer the value of being associated with a brand-name newspaper," says Doug Holt, a Burson-Marsteller media practice director.

And when pitching an editorial board, it is important to remember that it comprises the publication's most accomplished veterans.

"This is an intellectually curious, ...