Why Don't you Just Call?

So while I am at my job, writing press release after press release, my boss walks over and gives me a new assignment. He wants me to contact a local newspaper and get them to write a story about some of the local real estate agents using our product. I say OK!
But as I pull up their information and begin to write an email, I feel as though someone is watching me. I look up and see my boss with a confused look on his face. He asks with a wiser, more informed tone to his voice, "Why don't you just call them instead?"
Now I understand where he's coming from. A call is personal, and it allows me to connect with the reporter and explain the release I will be sending to them. But then I think, I could explain all that in an email, AND send the press release at the same time. Brilliant!
In the end I got a response within an hour after I had sent out the release, but the best part of the situation was realizing that email can be an efficient way to send out information quickly. Because sometimes a reporter doesn't have the time to answer a phone call like mine, or even more likely, they're not even at their office.