A debate in Lexington underscores tensions between traditional reporting and AI-assisted news The Kentucky Lantern champions human-made journalism, while Lexington Times utilises AI for coverage The dispute reflects broader challenges facing shrinking local news ecosystems across the US A small but telling dispute in Lexington, Kentucky, has opened a wider argument about the future of local journalism, especially the role of artificial intelligence in newsrooms that are trying to survive with fewer staff and thinner budgets. The spark came when Linda Blackford, editor-in-chief of the Kentucky Lantern, wrote about AI and journalism and stressed that the Lantern’s work is produced…

Bonnier News poised to become majority owner of Irish media group after partnership expansion Deal under review by regulators, with new leadership and board structure upcoming Business Post Group cites significant financial recovery and growth prospects Swedish publisher Bonnier News is set to become the majority owner of Business Post Group, in a deal that will leave founder Enda O’Coineen with a significant minority stake through his Kilcullen Family Office. The transaction marks a further step in a relationship that began in 2023, when Bonnier took a minority equity position in the Irish company. It still requires approval from the…

The Times adopts a specialised, multi-team approach to video content production Video is now a distinct editorial discipline, not just repurposed print stories Distribution strategies evolve with dedicated platforms like the new ‘Watch’ tab At WAN-IFRA’s World News Media Congress in Marseille, Solana Pyne, video director at The New York Times, argued that the traditional distinction between readers, listeners and viewers no longer reflects how audiences consume news. The shift is reshaping how newsrooms organise themselves. As audiences move more fluidly between text, audio and video, publishers are increasingly treating video not as a way to support written journalism but…

Podcasting is evolving beyond audio-only formats to include video and personality-led shows. Major outlets like The New York Times and The Guardian expand video content to reach new audiences. Monetisation models are diversifying with increased focus on advertising, subscriptions, and creator-led enterprises. News podcasting is moving decisively beyond the old audio-only model, with video, personality-led chat shows and creator-style distribution reshaping how publishers make, package and monetise their work, according to a new Reuters Institute report by Nic Newman. The study, The Changing Shape and New Economics of News Podcasting, argues that the medium is being pulled into a broader…

James Murdoch’s Lupa Systems to take ownership of Vox Media assets Vox to be split into two separate companies, with distinct portfolios Deal valued at over $300 million, aiming to boost valuation through segmentation James Murdoch has completed the purchase of a sizeable chunk of Vox Media in a deal that splits the digital publisher into two separate companies. According to a statement from Vox Media, Lupa Systems, the investment firm controlled by Murdoch, has taken ownership of Vox, New York magazine and the Vox Media Podcast Network. The assets will operate as a new company under Lupa ownership, while…

The Economist tests agent-readable content to adapt for AI intermediaries New formats aim to balance discoverability with brand control Internal AI adoption speeds product development and fosters ‘vibe coding’ culture The Economist is redesigning parts of its digital operation for a future in which AI assistants, rather than search engines or homepages, increasingly control how audiences discover information. According to Digiday, the publisher is testing agent-readable versions of content that already sits outside its paywall, including marketing and B2B sales pages. The company is exploring how much structured material it can expose to AI systems without weakening the value of…

The CMA approves the $3.7 billion acquisition with a sale of Shutterstock’s editorial arm The move aims to prevent market dominance in UK news imagery The deal highlights industry pressures from AI and digital content shifts Britain’s competition regulator has cleared Getty Images’ $3.7 billion takeover of Shutterstock, but only after requiring the companies to jettison Shutterstock’s editorial photography business in order to ease concerns over competition in the UK news imagery market. The Competition and Markets Authority said the deal could go ahead if Shutterstock sells the part of its business that supplies editorial images, including brands such as…

Axios expands local reporting to 35 cities with plans for 100. AI tools like GPT assist in drafting and editing, reducing costs. The company balances automation with journalistic integrity amidst industry scepticism. Axios is betting that artificial intelligence can do something many publishers have struggled to achieve for years: make local journalism economically viable again. In a conversation on The Media Copilot podcast, Axios chief operating officer Allison Murphy said the company is trying to reduce the cost of producing original local news without abandoning the reporting standards that give the work value. The strategy is already being put into…

Newsweek recovered from debt and declining readership through strategic alliances Key partnerships with Google Cloud and Statista drove significant growth in traffic and trust The revival exemplifies a shift towards collaborative models in legacy media success stories Newsweek’s turnaround under chief executive Dev Pragad has been driven less by internal restructuring than by a series of partnerships that helped rebuild the publisher’s audience, technology and commercial business. When Pragad took over, the company was carrying more than $25 million in debt and struggling with declining readership. Rather than rebuild every capability in-house, Newsweek focused on outside partnerships to supply technical…

The Washington Post begins rehiring staff after massive layoffs in February Some employees returned on a temporary basis to fill critical gaps The move raises questions about the paper’s strategic direction and workforce stability The Washington Post is attempting to stabilise its newsroom after February’s sweeping layoffs by quietly bringing back some of the journalists it had just let go, a sign of how quickly the impact of the cuts became apparent. According to reporting by the Columbia Journalism Review, editors began contacting dismissed reporters in March, asking some to return on what the union calls a “delayed layoff” basis.…