Thread by @risj_oxford

🚨 What trends will be shaping #journalism in 2022?

This is the question at the heart of our annual 'Trends and predictions' report, authored by @nicnewman and based on a survey of 246 executives from 52 countries

📱 Read here
reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/journalism-med…
🧶 Key findings in thread

First the good news:

👍 Even with the pandemic still raging and online traffic falling for many companies, 59% of the news leaders in our survey say their revenue has increased over the last year reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/journalism-med…

In the light of these figures, it’s not surprising that 75% of the managers surveyed say they are confident about their company’s prospects for 2022. However, only 60% say the same about journalism as a whole reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/journalism-med…

And yet 54% of the news leaders surveyed say their traffic hasn't gone up in 2021

📉 According to industry data, consumption of online news has fallen significantly in 🇬🇧🇺🇸. Among the possible factors, the end of the Trump presidency and the depressing nature of #COVID19 news

Many news companies will bet on subscriptions in 2022

💰 More publishers plan to push ahead with reader revenue strategies, with 79% of those surveyed saying this will be a top priority, ahead of advertising. On average, publishers say 3-4 revenue streams will be key this year

But this strategy may leave people behind

🚨 The emphasis on reader revenue models raises questions about information inequalities, with 47% of our respondents worrying that subscriptions may be pushing journalism towards richer and more educated audiences

News leaders are increasingly worried about how to attract people under 30

🙅🏿‍♂️ As these young audiences shift to more visual platforms, publishers say they'll be putting more resources into Instagram, TikTok and YouTube, and less effort into Twitter and Facebook

Many news organisations will be tightening their rules on how journalists should behave on social media in 2022

🐣 57% of our respondents think that journalists should stick to reporting the news on Twitter and Facebook and worry that expressing views could undermine trust

News leaders perceive covering climate change as a big challenge

🌪 Only 34% rate general coverage as good, even if 65% feel their own coverage was better. News editors say it is hard to get audiences to follow a slow-moving story that can often make audiences feel depressed

News innovation will be about iteration in 2022

💡 News leaders will focus on improving existing products and not so much on launching new ones. Up to 67% of our respondents say they will spend most of their time iterating products and making them quicker and more effective

News publishers will put more resources into formats that increase loyalty and attract new subscribers

🎧 Most of our respondents say they’ll focus on podcasts and digital audio (80%) as well as email newsletters (70%). Only 8% will invest in new applications for the metaverse

Media companies will continue to bet on AI

🤖 More than 80% of our sample say these technologies will be important for better content recommendations and newsroom automation. 69% see AI as critical on the business side in helping to attract and retain customers

This annual report, authored by @nicnewman, includes many other details about the challenges and opportunities facing journalism in 2022. Read it in full. It's worth your time

📱 Full report here
reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/journalism-med…
📃 PDF version here
reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/sites/default/…

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