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faces existential questions about purpose and value Traditional notions of a “paper of record” are increasingly outdated Successful organisations will innovatively redefine their role and revenue streams This first appeared in our weekly newsletter Editor’s picks.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…
Jonathan Greenberger to lead Politico from 1 May, focusing on expanding its reach Shift in leadership aims to enhance reporting speed and technological infrastructure Politico continues to diversify with new hires in audio, video, and Capitol Hill coverage Jonathan Greenberger will become Politico’s editor-in-chief on May 1, marking a shift…
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…
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.…
Investigative journalist Julia Angwin sues Grammarly over unauthorised use of her name in AI tool The case questions whether AI companies need explicit licences for referencing real individuals The lawsuit highlights broader concerns about transparency, consent, and attribution in AI practices A proposed class action in Manhattan federal court accuses Grammarly, the AI writing tool, of using the reputations of well-known journalists, authors and academics to market an AI editing feature without their permission. The complaint, filed by investigative journalist Julia Angwin, alleges the company’s “Expert Review” tool presented editing suggestions as if they were drawn from named writers, creating…
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…
The New York Times newsroom has grown by over 50% in a decade, marking ongoing success. Historical overexpansion at the Washington Post serves as a cautionary tale. Industry-wide decline and AI disruption suggest caution against large-scale staffing growth. This first appeared in our weekly newsletter Editor’s picks. Sign up here Food portions, the economy, TVs, apartment blocks, wars and people – a week in New York has reminded me that America just keeps getting bigger. You could add the New York Times to that list. This week AG Sulzberger, its publisher, revealed that its newsroom has now grown to…
ESPN hires six experienced journalists from The Washington Post amid industry reshuffle New recruits bolster ESPN’s investigative and long‑form sports coverage The move highlights the widening talent gap and strategic shifts after Post’s sports desk closure Five weeks after The Washington Post dismantled its sports desk, ESPN has hired six…
Axel Springer agrees to buy The Telegraph for £575 million, ending a lengthy sales process The deal marks the first time a German publisher owns the UK’s historically conservative newspaper Regulatory reviews are expected to scrutinise the impact on media plurality and foreign influence German publishing group Axel Springer has…
Axel Springer acquires Bisnow, integrating it into Brew Media Group The deal aims to strengthen Axel Springer’s US B2B and event-led offerings Bisnow remains operationally independent with senior management intact Axel Springer has agreed to acquire Bisnow, adding the events and editorial business to a new US-focused division that will…
News Corp’s CEO outlines a strategy combining licensing and litigation to protect journalism content The company has secured multi-million dollar deals with tech giants like Meta and OpenAI for AI training data Thomson emphasises the importance of reliable news sources for AI development and warns against unauthorised use News Corp…
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Nearly half of US consumers now turn to TikTok for search, a 20% increase in two years Gen Z is the most active, with 64% using TikTok for online searches Marketers should focus on short-form, visually engaging content to optimise discovery Nearly half of US consumers have used TikTok as…
Unanimous approval of a three‑year contract by HuffPost Writers Guild of America East members Agreement includes AI content review, advanced deployment notice, and protection against impersonation Salary minimums increase by nearly 10%, with improved parental leave, sick leave, and professional development funds Members of the Writers Guild of America East…
Steve Grove discusses the decline of traditional local newspapers amid rising citizen reporting The Star Tribune adapts through digital innovation, risking operational cuts Signs of growth emerge through increased online subscriptions despite funding challenges Sometimes the context around a conversation reshapes its meaning. That was evident at last Friday’s Good…
RAG combines retrieval and generative models to deliver up-to-date, accurate answers Structured data and schema markup boost content discoverability for AI systems SEO strategies are shifting towards fact clarity and entity prominence to favour AI-driven search answers Retrieval-Augmented Generation — or RAG — is changing how information is surfaced online.…
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Major UK news organisations launch SPUR to combat unauthorised AI training use Aim to establish licensing standards and secure fair compensation for original reporting Initiative underscores concerns over AI’s impact on journalism’s economic sustainability Some of Britain’s largest news organisations have launched a coalition to challenge the unauthorised use of journalism by AI developers. Leaders of the BBC, Financial Times, Guardian, Sky News and Telegraph Media Group have signed an open letter announcing SPUR , Standards for Publisher Usage Rights. The group says it will press for clearer rules and compensation when original reporting is used to train artificial intelligence…
Programme targets young media leaders across EMEA to foster responsible AI use in newsrooms 12-week, tuition-free initiative supported by Google News Initiative aims to narrow innovation gap Focus on skills development through real-world challenges, mentorship, and collaborative learning WAN-IFRA has unveiled the NextGen AI Leaders Programme, a 12-week initiative to help young media executives lead responsible AI adoption and strengthen newsroom management. The tuition-free scheme reflects WAN-IFRA’s effort to back a more diverse generation of leaders and narrow the innovation gap between well-funded global publishers and smaller, mid-sized and local news organisations. “To take full advantage of the opportunities AI…
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Lenore Taylor announces her departure after 13 years at Guardian Australia, including a decade as editor Under her leadership, the outlet became one of Australia’s most-read news sources, with major award wins A successor will be chosen through an open process, with David Munk serving as interim editor until then Lenore Taylor has announced she will step down from Guardian Australia after 13 years in senior roles that included a decade as the title’s editor, leaving the organisation she helped establish in 2013. Taylor joined Guardian Australia as a senior member of staff at its May 2013 launch and quickly…
Fake Facebook pages impersonate New Zealand news outlets, misleading the public with fabricated visuals Synthetic images linked to disasters and political campaigns raise legal and ethical concerns Experts warn about the increasing sophistication and reach of AI-generated misinformation across social media A growing network of Facebook pages masquerading as New Zealand news outlets is flooding social media with AI-generated images and videos that distort genuine reporting, according to an investigation. The accounts lift copy from established mastheads and attach computer-generated visuals or lightly rewritten text. While the examples uncovered are New Zealand-specific, researchers and fact-checkers say the same pattern is…
The Athletic integrates more live blogs with video to keep audiences engaged and protect content from AI scraping. Human-led, in-the-moment coverage aims to provide a competitive edge over automated systems. The move coincides with major sporting events, testing the effectiveness of rapid multimedia storytelling. The Athletic is expanding its use of live blogs enriched with video as part of a broader effort to keep audiences on its own sites and to blunt the impact of automated content collection by AI systems. According to a report in Digiday, the move, timed to coincide with overlapping major sporting events this week, reflects…
Internal upheaval culminates in Lewis’s resignation Massive layoffs spark criticism and staff protests Jeff D’Onofrio steps in to stabilise the iconic newspaper Will Lewis, the publisher and CEO of The Washington Post, abruptly resigned Saturday evening, ending a tumultuous two-year tenure just days after presiding over one of the largest newsroom staff reductions in the publication’s history. His departure was announced in a brief, two-paragraph internal email to staff that lacked a subject line. In the note, Lewis characterised his time at the paper as “two years of transformation” and stated that “now is the right time for me to…
Desks affected include international, sports, books and pictures Moves cited as strategic reset driven by declining search traffic and AI impact Critics fear cuts will diminish coverage of foreign affairs and local issues The Washington Post is eliminating roughly a third of its newsroom in a restructuring that will close the sports section and books desk, suspend the paper’s flagship podcast and sharply reduce foreign and metro reporting. The cuts, announced to staff by executive editor Matt Murray, include the dismissal of the entire Middle East team, senior foreign and Asia editors and correspondents covering China, Iran and Turkey. Murray…
YouTube aims to transform creators into full-scale production houses by 2026 The platform is enhancing commerce features and integrating AI tools to boost revenue Safeguards and parental controls are being strengthened to protect younger audiences YouTube is doubling down on a strategy that increasingly places it in direct competition with news publishers and broadcasters, positioning creators as full-scale production operations while expanding commerce and artificial intelligence across the platform. In his 2026 priorities letter, YouTube chief executive Neal Mohan outlined what the company describes as its next phase of growth: treating top creators less like hobbyists and more like studios,…
The Christian Science Monitor is redesigning its print and digital platforms to revitalise its audience. It aims to balance its traditional solutions-oriented reporting with more inclusive and timely coverage. The publication remains financially supported by the Church of Christ, Scientist, as it navigates the challenges of modern journalism. The Christian Science Monitor is attempting a careful revival of a reputation built over more than a century, even as it confronts steep declines in audience and staff that mirror the wider contraction of legacy news organisations. The Monitor represents one of the longest-running experiments in values-driven journalism in the US, and…
The Star Tribune emphasises verification and accuracy over rapid social media reporting. Community responses and legal battles highlight the tensions surrounding the Operation Metro Surge. The newsroom’s careful approach aims to provide fuller, more reliable coverage in a chaotic environment. Amid a saturation of real-time coverage of Operation Metro Surge — the largest federal immigration enforcement deployment in recent memory — the Minnesota Star Tribune is trying to stand apart. Its editors say the paper is deliberately slowing its reporting to verify what is circulating online, even as videos and posts spread rapidly across social platforms. In an environment where…
Danish publishers reconfigure workflows and embrace transparency to build trust Narrow editorial focuses and humanised formats strengthen audience loyalty Strategic AI adoption and collaborative infrastructures underpin sustainable growth Leading Danish publishers are showing how audience-centric strategies and organisational innovation can help newsrooms stay relevant and financially healthy in a turbulent digital media era, according to a report from WAN-IFRA on their recent study tour in the country late last year. The findings distil five key lessons from three of Denmark’s most established media companies — JP/Politikens Hus, Berlingske and Zetland. The core takeaway: traditional news organisations that prioritise user needs,…
Some 60 foreign journalists plead with Jeff Bezos to protect global coverage Staff fear large-scale layoffs could weaken international reporting efforts Industry analysts warn that cuts may diminish the paper’s ability to report from conflict zones About 60 journalists on The Washington Post’s foreign desk have appealed directly to the newspaper’s owner, Jeff Bezos, urging him to protect international reporting as management weighs a new round of cost cuts that staff fear could be extensive but remain unconfirmed. In a letter sent on Sunday, foreign staff described their message as “a collective plea for you to preserve our newspaper’s global…

