The industry faces existential questions about purpose and value Traditional notions of a “paper of record” are increasingly outdated Successful organisations will innovatively redefine their role and revenue streams This first appeared in our weekly newsletter Editor’s picks. Sign up here I’ve been turning to existential questions in recent days. Why are we here? What are we doing? Who will miss us when we’re gone? To be clear, I’m not asking these questions about the human race – though they feel more apposite at the moment – but news providers. I think my introspection has come because I’ve been…

Reddit CEO Steve Huffman urges tech firms to focus on hiring recent graduates skilled in AI Industry leaders see young, AI-native workers as vital for future innovation and leadership Despite automation trends, companies emphasise the importance of training entry-level staff for long-term success Steve Huffman wants companies to stop overlooking recent graduates — and start hiring them for their fluency with artificial intelligence. The Reddit chief executive argues that a cohort raised alongside large language models offers a competitive advantage, at a time when companies are reworking products and workflows around AI. His view reflects a wider shift in Silicon…

dpa partners with Google to foster collaboration between newsrooms and digital creators The programme aims to enhance fact-based reporting and experiment with new formats Participants will showcase findings at a Hamburg event with practical industry recommendations Deutsche Presse-Agentur has launched a programme to connect traditional newsrooms with digital-first creators, aiming to test new formats and reinforce fact-based reporting on social platforms. The initiative — Creator x News, supported by Google — was announced at a Berlin conference and will bring media organisations and journalistic creators into structured collaboration. It reflects a wider shift as audiences increasingly encounter news via social…

Highlights the importance of audience teams in newsrooms Critiques their ongoing marginalisation despite proven value Advocates for promoting audience specialists to leadership roles This first appeared in our weekly newsletter Editor’s picks. Sign up here I have long believed that op-ed columnists should be given five years in the job and then be sent out to pasture or other assignments. My experience is that after that long in the job – and to be honest, probably sooner – they aren’t saying anything new. The necessity of producing a cogent argument on a topic 40-plus weeks a year means they…

Axios cuts 11 newsroom roles to focus on deep subject expertise Company aims to build a ‘newsroom of the future’ blending human skill and AI Shift reflects broader trend towards niche authority in digital media Axios has cut 11 newsroom roles as it pivots away from general assignment reporting towards specialist journalists with deep subject expertise. The move underscores a broader shift in digital media, where publishers are betting that authority and niche knowledge, rather than scale , will drive audience growth and revenue, particularly as artificial intelligence reshapes how news is produced and consumed. The layoffs affect staff across…

Dow Jones aims for $1bn in annual earnings within five years amid shift to digital and AI-driven products The segment’s revenue now 82% digital, with a focus on subscriptions and data services Growth driven by AI licensing, risk and energy intelligence, and enterprise news News Corp said Dow Jones, the parent of the Wall Street Journal, could generate $1bn in annual earnings within five years, as the company shifts further towards digital subscriptions and professional data products. The target, presented at an investor briefing on March 16, implies growth of about 70 per cent from fiscal 2025 levels and caps…

Jamie Stockwell set to start as vice president of news at USA TODAY in March 2026 Will focus on impartial reporting, innovation, and expanding audience reach Brings extensive experience from The Washington Post, The New York Times, and Axios Local USA Today has appointed Jamie Stockwell as vice president of news, the company said, adding that she will take up the role on 30 March 2026. The hire places Stockwell alongside senior vice president Monica Richardson as USA Today seeks to expand its national reach and modernise newsroom operations. “USA Today has a powerful mission and a unique place in…

Notus recruits nine seasoned journalists including seven from The Washington Post Move highlights shifts in Washington’s media landscape with talent leaving traditional outlets Organisational rebrand plans suggest ambitions to rival established national newspapers The nonprofit political newsroom NOTUS has hired nine journalists, including seven from The Washington Post, in a move that underscores growing competition between legacy news organisations and well-funded startup outlets and further emphasises the issues at the beleaguered Post. The hires, announced Monday in an internal memorandum from the Allbritton Journalism Institute, bring a cluster of veteran reporters and editors to the newsroom founded last year by…

Teenage use of TikTok and Snapchat declines but persists in some groups Platforms remove millions of underage accounts but face enforcement hurdles International interest grows as Australia’s approach influences other countries’ policies Two months after Australia introduced the world’s first nationwide ban preventing under-16s from holding accounts on major social media platforms, early data suggests teenage use has fallen but not disappeared. A report from parental control software maker Qustodio found activity among 13- to 15-year-olds on TikTok and Snapchat declined between November and February, though more than one in five teenagers in that group continued to use the apps.…

Over 1.5 million research papers processed with AI in 2025, with a 25% forecasted increase in 2026 Springer Nature’s Snapp platform integrates AI tools to streamline manuscript handling and reviewer management The publisher balances efficiency with human oversight, ensuring transparency and research integrity Springer Nature says it processed more than 1.5 million research papers through AI-assisted editorial workflows in 2025 and expects that figure to rise by a further 25 per cent in 2026 as it expands the technology across its journals. The publisher says nearly 60 AI tools are now embedded in different stages of manuscript handling to assist…