The digital publishing landscape changes rapidly, which requires publishers to rethink where and how they reach their audiences. And right now, mobile apps have moved to the fore.
For years, social media and search engines drove discovery, consistently directing traffic to publisher websites. However, in 2024, Meta shut down the Facebook News tab in the US and UK, leading to a sharp decline in referral traffic from the platform. X, formerly known as Twitter, completely deprioritized links, removing headlines and thumbnails. Meanwhile, Google introduced AI Overviews, which push publisher content further down the results page and replace links with AI-generated summaries that answer user questions directly.
As these pathways to audiences lose effectiveness, publishers are increasingly focused on channels they own and can control. And, in alignment with that, the Pugpig Media App Report 2025, finds that mobile apps now play a central role in building strong, lasting relationships with readers. With social and search traffic on the decline, apps give publishers a way to take back control of their audience relationships—and to deliver better, stickier user experiences in the process.
Apps offer control
Unlike third-party platforms, apps provide publishers with full control over consumer experience, data, and monetization. Pugpig’s benchmark data, drawn from 135 publishers and 400 apps, shows they perform exceptionally well in engagement. Day-one retention rates average 71%, nearly three times the global average, and 30-day retention reaches 46%, six times the norm. Apps with rich content features such as games, audio, and video perform even better.
Today’s media apps are more than just digital versions of print publications. Nearly three-quarters now publish content daily. Many feature spoken articles, podcasts, vertical videos, puzzles, and other interactive elements to engage users. Games are becoming highly influential. On average, users who play games within publisher apps play 37 times a month, and in some cases, over 100 times. Meanwhile, audio content, especially text-to-speech articles enabled by generative AI, is rapidly growing. Users who engage with audio spend nearly twice as much time in the app compared to those who do not.
New revenue strategies
In addition to bolstering direct audience relationships, the report finds that apps also help publishers evolve their revenue strategies. With advertising under pressure and print circulation in long-term decline, many publishers now focus on reader revenue, including digital subscriptions and in-app purchases. The Financial Times, for example, reports higher conversion and retention rates after adopting native in-app subscriptions.
Meanwhile, recent U.S. court rulings allow publishers to offer subscriptions outside of the App Store, bypassing Apple’s commission. While these external flows come with some friction, they give publishers more control over pricing, promotions, and user data.
Publisher apps improve personalization
The Pugpig report also highlights a clear shift toward personalization among publisher apps. For the third year in a row, personalization ranks as publishers’ top innovation priority. Half of those surveyed now offer some form of personalization, ranging from custom homepages to targeted push notifications.
AI plays an increasing role in delivering these experiences, making it easier to recommend content and tailor the app to each user’s preferences. Not all publishers agree on how to use personalization. Some express concern that it can feel impersonal, but many are finding success by combining algorithmic recommendations with editorial curation.
Real-world examples throughout the report show how publishers are applying these strategies. The New York Times built a portfolio of dedicated apps, such as NYT Cooking, Games, and Audio, to boost engagement and unlock new subscription opportunities. The Baltimore Banner added vertical video to its app, which now drives higher engagement. Stylist launched a premium VIP membership in the app, giving users access to exclusive content and community experiences. Runner’s World built an interactive “training companion” that guides runners through personalized workout plans.
Across the board, publisher apps aren’t just a digital add-on; they’re becoming a crucial part of the media industry. They provide a way to build direct relationships, offer personalized experiences, and support various revenue streams. The most successful apps, according to the report, are those where publishers make significant investments editorially, technically, and strategically.
Between changes to Google search, the evolution of AI queries and algorithmically-driven social feeds, finding new audiences is harder than ever for publishers.
Apple News offers something many of the other tech and social platforms don’t: a highly-engaged, quality audience keen to read. But publishers have been burned badly by platforms in the past. Many are cautious about crafting strategies specifically for yet another channel.
The dilemma is more acute for publishers with membership and subscription strategies. Balancing free and paywalled content can be challenging enough, before considering Apple’s own paid News+ offering.
Here’s how Scientific American, STAT News and Outside Inc. approach Apple News, from which content to publish to the next steps they encourage readers to take.
Reaching new audiences
“The big challenge for us, and for every publisher right now, is finding your audience and reaching people,” said David Ewalt, Editor in Chief of Springer Nature title Scientific American. He specifically pointed to Google’s increasing ‘zero click’ searches and AI summaries as causing a drop-off in new audiences. The primary advantage of publishing to Apple News, as compared with prioritizing discovery on other platforms, is the high intent of users who come to the app. “Aggregators like Apple News are incredibly useful in reaching new people, especially people who are passionate about reading,” says Ewalt.
Apple News is also seen primarily as a top-of-funnel acquisition source by Outside Inc., which publishes outdoor brands covering everything from climbing and skiing to backpacking and mountain biking. Chief Media Officer Heather Dietrick explained that the platform offers a more generalist audience than those who find them via Google search, and one more willing to spend time. “They’re definitely willing to stick around and read our long-form pieces, they have a big hunger for those,” she noted.
Health and medical publication STAT News, produced by Boston Globe Media, also sees Apple News as an exposure opportunity. “The way we envision Apple News from a STAT lens is that it is very much top-of-funnel brand awareness,” explained Engagement Editor Alexander Spinelli. “But I like to think that any person could end up being a paid subscriber.”
The paywall debate…on platform
For each of these publishers, deciding what to offer across Apple News for free and their own sites is a careful balancing act. To complicate the strategy further, publishers can also put content behind Apple’s own premium offering, Apple News+. While publishers are circumspect on the subject, it can be a direct revenue generator as Apple shares revenue based on a reader’s engaged minutes with a publisher.
For Outside Inc., this is an opportunity to showcase longform content. “We’re constantly looking at the data, seeing what the audience is responsive to, seeing what is more scarce on the platform,” Dietrick said. She explained that they are very flexible when it comes to what they publish across News and News+, depending on demand.
Despite having a registration wall and metered paywall on the website, Scientific American publishes the majority of its stories to Apple News. Ewalt said that this was because the priority for the platform is to get people exposed to SciAm’s stories, rather than as a conversion tool in itself.
STAT has clearer dividing lines. As a B2P – business-to-professional – publication, they keep more specialized content to the website. “We’re really succinct about what we choose to be free versus [paywalled],” Spinelli outlined. “A lot of [articles] that are public health related…which we feel the masses need to know will be free. That’s what ends up going to Apple.”
This suits STAT well as the Apple News audience is more generalized. But this also means they don’t publish to Apple News+. Spinelli said that they would prefer to nurture paying subscribers themselves than manage that relationship through a platform. “Our [premium] Plus model is so specific to our subscribers that we didn’t want to offer it anywhere else,” he explained. “We really nurture our Plus subscribers…it’s a really robust offering.”
An edition-based approach
One strategy which has proved successful for Outside Inc. is publishing “mini magazines” to Apple News+. The publication puts out a print magazine, Outside Magazine, which comes out four times a year. But they keep an eye on traffic and trends for the Apple audience.
“Often, we’ll package up content when we see that a particular topic is really drawing interest,” Dietrick shared. “We’ll surround that topic in a 360 way, package up content and make a mini magazine from it.”
This content can come from across any of Outside’s brands. It’s then pulled together into a bundle, and repackaged for Apple News+. “Readers get deep into a category,” said Dietrick. “They spend longer with it and consume more stories per session.”
As well as mini magazines, Outside also promotes guides created for other channels to Apple News+ as a magazine. Their Summer 2025 Gear Guide brings together reviews of over 800 products across their brands. This also allows the publisher to drive additional revenue with affiliate links.
“Apple has recently been prioritizing affiliate stories…so we’re giving them more affiliate content,” Dietrick said, explaining that reviews are already a key pillar for Outside Inc. “It’s already content that we’re creating for other referral sources and our sites, so we’re not creating anything extra for them … its great that Apple’s strategy aligns with ours.”
Encouraging further engagement
All three publishers make use of call-to-action [CTA] boxes in Apple News articles. Scientific American prioritize directing readers to content on their own site. “I’s a good way to get users back into our ecosystem and start showing them some subscription notices,” Ewalt noted.
By contrast, STAT are heavily focused on driving newsletter sign-ups. “We have a great offering of free newsletters, and if people are enjoying our free content, they’re more than likely going to enjoy our flagship newsletter,” Spinelli outlined.
STAT reappraised their CTA strategy at the end of last year, bringing in technology partners such as FlatPlan to manage more flexible and UX-friendly boxes. This has proved fruitful, with the team now able to experiment, track and measure what is working. “Any time we have a story now, we’re getting new [newsletter] subscribers, whether that’s five, or fifteen, or 20. Every new subscriber helps,” said Spinelli.
They chose to focus on newsletter sign-ups because they didn’t want to overwhelm users, as Spinelli explained: “We pick and choose where we focus our efforts [in Apple News], and then the second they get back to our site, they’ll get to see all the offerings and other things that we do.”
Outside Inc have a variety of strategies for Apple News CTAs depending on whether a user is known or new. “We’re always thinking about the signals that readers give us to say where they are in their own activity journey so we can figure out what we should put in front of them,” said Dietrick. She explained that new users are encouraged to read more from Outside’s channels. Known users are encouraged to sign up for newsletters or read more tailored recommended content.
Opportunities and limitations
For publishers who have a clear understanding of Apple News’ place and potential in a subscriber funnel, it can be a powerful tool. Scientific American’s Ewalt emphasised the high-quality nature of the users. “The Apple audience is a great audience for us. It tends to be the kind of consumers who are going to read our content and subscribe to the magazine,” he said.
Outside’s Dietrick emphasised that a successful Apple News strategy ultimately comes down to a partnership between audience development and editorial teams. “You need to have people who are looking at the data, seeing what’s working, being willing to make tweaks to it, and not have it drive any editorial decisions, but just shape what content you want to put in front of this audience,” she added.
All three acknowledged the limitations of longer-term Apple News strategies. Ultimately, if Apple’s priorities change, these traffic and revenue sources could easily fall away.
STAT’s Spinelli has a more pragmatic take. “The majority of mobile users in the world have this device that prompts them with this immediate access to information,” he said. “I realized that if I get a million page views on a story on Apple but only get one paid subscriber, a million people just saw STAT’s reporting and STAT’s journalism.”
“[Hopefully] you’re going to want to come back to us, maybe it’s not the first, or second, or the fourth or the 10th time, but that’s the funnel process. I’m happy to play the long game,” he concluded.
We’re not at Google Zero quite yet. But, as we near this point where Google search results provide direct answers and reduce outbound links, publishers face a critical imperative: They must build direct connections, maintain the loyalty of existing readers, and deeply engage audiences.
Since Google introduced AI Overviews 14 months ago, the AI-generated summaries have hurt publishers’ bottom lines, scuttled search traffic, and impacted ad revenue and subscriptions. This has resulted “zero-click” searches and a sharp decline in traffic, which some have dubbed “Google Zero”. News searches resulting in no click-throughs to news websites grew from 56% to nearly 69% as of May 2025, according to report from digital market intelligence company Similarweb.
About 40% of The Atlantic’s traffic comes from search, CEO Nicholas Thompson told Azeem Azhar, founder of Exponential View. “We’re seeing a significant decline, maybe a 20% decline,” he said. This translates to an 8% drop in overall website visitors, impacting ad revenue, subscriptions, and brand awareness.
AI Overviews appear in 39% of Google queries, according to Website Planet. An estimated 5.6% of U.S. search traffic on desktop browsers last month went to AI-powered large language models, according to market intelligence firm Datos, The Wall Street Journal reported. And analytics company Authoritas found that a site previously ranked first in a search result lost 79% of its traffic if results were delivered below an AI overview.
Whether publishers like it or not, that traffic isn’t coming back. Google Zero looms large on the horizon. Pew Research found that for searches with AI summaries, Google users clicked on a traditional search result link in only 8% of visits, compared to 15% without AI summaries.
And plenty of publishers aren’t happy about things. A legal complaint was submitted to the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority over the impact of Google AI Overviews on news publishers, arguing that Google is abusing its market dominance by using publisher content in AI-generated responses without fair compensation, while simultaneously reducing traffic to news websites. Additionally, The Independant Publishers Alliance filed an antitrust complaint with the European Commission in June, alleging that Google abuses its market power in online search.
Meanwhile, as publishers adapt to this new reality, DCN spoke to some industry experts to reveal what’s working.
Direct relationships important, valuable
Some publishers aren’t waiting for Google Zero, they’re already building the direct audience relationships and cultivating reader loyalty that will matter even more when search traffic disappears.
Hearst Connecticut Media Group strategically builds direct audience relationships as part of its long-term audience strategy. Their GameTime CT high school sports vertical, which serves high school parents, athletes and coaches, drives subscriptions according to Mandy Hofmockel, managing editor of audience at Hearst Media Connecticut.
“It goes above and beyond game coverage and is a formula for success in serving local audiences,” Hofmockel says. “Our high school sports coverage is evolving to be less about the sport itself and more about athletes, their stories around the game. We are building depth, experiences and connections.”
To deepen engagement, the company launched it’s first texting campaign for UConn basketball during March Madness this year, she says. “That platform allowed that small but engaged pool of UConn fans to message us directly with questions on everything from player injuries to coach strategies, to just like where they could watch the game,” she says.
Hearst Media Connecticut is also deepening its reporting in key local areas, including weather, education and real estate, even adding a meteorologist to its team and developing weather tools and trackers. Hearst’s hyperlocal approach, covering school closures, local weather patterns, and community-specific issues, provides indispensable information creating direct traffic that survives the death of search.
Being a local publisher provides advantage. “We know what it’s like to live in, go to school in and eat across the state. That’s reflected in our coverage and the key coverage areas for the newsroom,” Hofmockel says. “Our readers don’t hesitate to share us with us what they think of our coverage because they feel that connection to us.” This means when readers need to know what’s really happening in their town or city, they come straight to Hearst instead of searching for answers.
Direct engagement, across multiple platforms
BBC Studios has “embraced all manner of platforms to reach audiences wherever they are, from a thriving BBC News WhatsApp channel to Instagram clubs for our Culture super-fans.” However, their primary focus on building stronger, direct relationships through product innovation and editorial strategy, says Ben Goldberger, GM and executive director of editorial content. “Central to this is the relaunch of our BBC.com site and app, which offers a premium, more streamlined user experience that encouraged repeat visits and deeper engagement,” Goldberger says.
The company rolled out a new pay model on BBC.com in the US, which Goldberger called an important step in strengthening the connection with their most passionate users. The launch of the new pay model will help them gain greater insight into their audiences’ preferences and behaviors, and to strengthen those connections.
“One constant has been our commitment to our owned-and-operated channels,” he says. “We have seen meaningful success driving engagement on our platforms as we reduce reliance on those of others.”
BBC Studios operates 11 regular newsletters for global audiences, spanning topics from US politics to personal health. Goldberger says the response to these has been incredibly encouraging. “Our newsletters subscribers are deeply engaged with our work, regularly visiting BBC.com from newsletter links and taking the time to send thoughtful, considered feedback,” he says. “Indeed, the outpouring of notes from readers of our In History newsletter led us to create a recurring section featuring reader memories that is among the most popular.”
BBC Studios aren’t just creating an email list, they’re creating a feedback loop where engaged newsletter readers become content contributors and reliable traffic drivers. It’s a two-way relationship that generates both audience loyalty and editorial material. BBC Studios owns every touchpoint in the reader journey, making them insulated from external platform disruptions like Google Zero.
Building stories AI can’t replicate
David Skok built The Logic, a Canadian business publication focused on technology and innovation, as a subscription-first publication from launch in 2019. “Our business model necessitated us having a direct relationship with our readers from the start,” the CEO and editor-in-chief says.
In a recent column about AI’s impact on journalism, Skok delved into the existential question facing publishers as AI upends traditional web discovery. He believes in creating stories that no AI platform can summarize accurately.
“If you’re writing stuff that is yours, exclusively yours, you cannot get anywhere else and isn’t answered in just one pithy response from a chat engine, that’s how you’re going to win,” he continues. “The thing that’s really still going to differentiate you is what stories are you assigning and what stories are your reporters pitching? Are they things that you cannot get anywhere else?”
Beyond content strategy, The Logic is intentional about their audience engagement. “I think intimate events are really working,” Skok explains, describing some of The Logic’s recent events. “We’ll go to a place like Calgary or Vancouver and have 30 people for breakfast and just talk about the issues of the day, bring in one of our columnists, and those kinds of things are extreme value for a smaller group of people. And they feel it.”
The Logic also has a Slack channel for direct engagement with reporters, and hosts virtual events based on breaking news. “We try to make sure that our readers understand that what they’re getting with The Logic subscription is way more than just access to ungated content behind a paywall,” he says.
Beyond the (zero) click
“Publishers will have to shift their expectation expectations from some of the primary referral sources we’ve relied on in the past,” Hofmockel says. “It doesn’t mean we completely give up on search and social. But we have to adjust our strategies and find additional ways to connect with our communities.”
As publishers focus on direct relationships, they continue to make sure they’re “maximized for visibility,” on Google because “it’s still an important channel for distributing our work,” Hofmockel from Hearst says. However, it is important to take a strategic, rather than dependant, approach. In other words: never be solely dependent on platforms for your core business model.
Hofmockel believes it’s an opportunity to reevaluate not just audience strategies, but publishers’ content approach. “We can build new, distinctive products (that) are rooted in data, go deep in the categories that matter… and make sure we’re giving readers reasons to come and subscribe. Building around these needs with expert reporting will make us essential with or without platforms,” she says.
Building direct relationships, on whatever platforms you own, whether it’s newsletters, events podcasts, or content verticals, publishers must be conscious and intentional about owning their audiences, according to The Logic’s Skok.
“I think that’s the most important relationship you can have, and it’s the one that will allow you to withstand this change. The thing with a subscription business, like a paywall business like we have is, it’s so much harder to build it up. It’s slower, it’s more methodical. There’s no quick hack, growth hack to make it happen. But once you’ve built it up, it’s really hard to tear it down because these readers are invested in your success.”
As AI reshapes digital discovery, publishers who cultivate direct, meaningful relationships with engaged audiences, position themselves to survive and thrive in the post-Google Zero landscape.
In digital publishing, loyalty is everything. Yet most of today’s traffic still comes from platforms we don’t control: social media, search and aggregators like Google Discover. That worked for a while. But now, the rules are changing fast. And, to build a loyal audience, you’ll need to change your approach.
Social traffic is shrinking, too. Facebook has reduced visibility for news links by over 80% since its pivot away from journalism in 2021. And with AI summaries becoming more common in search results, even Google Search is becoming less reliable as a traffic source.
That leaves one source of traffic with long-term value: people who come to you directly. The good news is that this has been perfected by many publishers, and it’s an easy strategy to emulate.
Direct traffic means real connection
Direct traffic isn’t just a number in a dashboard. It’s a sign of trust. It means someone typed in your URL, opened your app, clicked a bookmark, or followed your newsletter link. They didn’t stumble onto your content. They came to you on purpose.
In the Nordics, we see publishers with 80–90% of their traffic coming direct. This is not a coincidence. It’s a result of long-term product decisions that support reader habits: live coverage, frequently updated and often personalized front pages with high click-through rates, well-timed and relevant push notifications that bring readers back in real time, newsletters tailored to reader interests and sent at moments when your audience is most likely to engage, and strong editorial presence.
Subscriptions follow loyalty
Many publishers try to win subscriptions from users who come through search, Discover, or social. That’s fine, but most of these readers are only there for a single article. And most won’t stay on to become loyal audience members.
The most valuable subscriptions come from users who already know your brand. They return often. They read more than one story. They come back even without a link.
Recent research from Northwestern’s Medill Spiegel Research Center confirms that reader regularity – how often a subscriber visits your site – is the strongest predictor of retention. This finding held across 107 U.S. newspapers, beating out pageviews and time on site as indicators of subscriber health.
Improving on-site value for loyal audience members
Strong breaking news coverage
The result was not just more traffic, but more predictable, repeatable, and resilient engagement.
What remains when platforms disappear
Platforms will continue to change. Some may disappear. The only thing they have in common is that they are not serving your long-term interests. The only audience you control is the one that comes to you directly.
Any publisher that expects to remain relevant in the years ahead needs a clear strategy for increasing direct traffic. Without one, you remain dependent on systems you do not control. That is a risk no publisher can afford to ignore.
The front page is your most important habit-forming tool
In his book Atomic Habits, James Clear describes how habits form through a loop of cue, craving, response and reward. This loop is driven by dopamine.
Source: Atomic Habits, Figure 9
The same mechanism applies when a reader visits a news site. The front page is the cue. If the visit is rewarded, the habit is reinforced. If not, the impulse weakens.
In the beginning (illustrated as A in the diagram), dopamine is released when the reward is experienced. Over time, as the habit takes shape (B), dopamine begins to rise earlier—at the moment the cue is recognized—because the brain now expects the reward. This anticipation creates a sense of motivation and reinforces the habit.
But when the expected reward doesn’t come (C), dopamine drops. The result is disappointment, and over time, the habit may stop altogether.
This applies directly to how readers interact with a front page. Each visit is a response to a cue—often formed by habit. If the page offers something new or relevant, the reward is delivered and the habit is strengthened. But if the content is unchanged, predictable, or uninteresting, the reader leaves with nothing—and the loop is broken.
Earlier in this article, I referenced research from Medill showing that visit frequency is more important than article depth when it comes to long-term subscription value. Readers who come back often are far more likely to stay. But to support that pattern, each visit needs to deliver something fresh.
That’s why personalization must begin at the top of the page. Not halfway down, and not just in selected modules. For it to work in a newsroom context, it has to be done responsibly—with editorial oversight and clear boundaries. A news brand cannot personalize like a social platform. I’ve written more about what responsible personalization looks like here: Informed personalization: editors in charge, trust at stake.
But, unlike a number of other legacy social networks, the platform continues to go from strength to strength. Back in 2022, I argued on these pages that media companies need a dedicated YouTube strategy, a sentiment that remains equally relevant three years on.
Here are six reasons why many media companies need to reconsider the value they attach to YouTube, and six proven tactics to help maximize their impact and approach to the platform.
YouTube enjoys huge reach and engagement
According to the Business of Apps website, YouTube has more than 2.7 billion monthly active users. Over 238 million of these users are in the U.S., the StatsUp site notes. In terms of reach, that makes it either the biggest, or second largest, social network in the world, depending on your source. Either way, it’s a huge audience.
Lastly, engagement dwarves other social networks. “YouTube takes the lion’s share of … social media time,” commentsSimon Kemp, the Chief Analyst at DataReportal. “The world spends almost twice as much time using YouTube as it spends using the platform’s next nearest rival, TikTok.”
Despite this, many publishers continue to treat YouTube as an afterthought compared to shinier, newer, visual-oriented platforms like the aforementioned TikTok or Instagram.
Esra Dogramaci, a digital news executive and YouTube specialist, who has worked for international broadcasters including Al Jazeera, BBC, DW, and others, agrees. “News organizations [and] publishers should have always been paying attention to YouTube,” she told me. “We often forget that YouTube is the second biggest search engine, and [the] world’s largest video platform.”
It’s a core platform for reaching Gen Z and Gen Alpha
Efforts to more effectively engage younger audiences is a key goal for many media companies. It’s no surprise that YouTube can be a pivotal plank in these strategies. Afterall, as Rande Price, VP, Research at Digital Content Next, recently reflected, “prioritizing video formats that are concise, authentic, and visually native to social platforms is essential to reaching Gen Z.”
Data published at the end of last year found that more than seven in 10 Gen Z consumers (71%) discover new media content (such as music, podcasts, and TV series) through YouTube, only just behind social media as a whole (72%).
Moreover, 73% of U.S. teens aged 13-17 (a mix of Generation Z and Generation Alpha, a demographic born after 2010) say they use YouTube every day. According to insights from the Pew Research Center, that means YouTube is “the most widely used and visited platform” among this age group. That includes 15% who said that their use of the platform is “almost constant.”
Short-form video is growing in popularity
There are multiple ways to harness YouTube to attract younger audiences. As Price points out, “tone, pace, and relevance” are intrinsic to this. Those sentiments are applicable to all content on the platform, including YouTube Shorts, an area seeing considerable growth. Last month, Neal Mohan, YouTube’s CEO, revealed that “YouTube Shorts are now averaging over 200 billion daily views!”
That audience isn’t just Gen Z, although they are a significant share of Shorts consumers.
Publisher’s short video strategies therefore should encompass YouTube, as well as TikTok, and Reels on Facebook and Instagram. These formats can also encourage consumption of long-form video, as well as acting as their own, standalone, genre.
“YouTube Shorts is… the ‘take away’ version prior to the ‘dine in’ experience,” contends Dogramaci. She argues that Shorts can serve as a gateway to your main channel especially if it is fully optimized. (For tips on how to do this, read to the end of the article!)
“It appeals to younger audiences with short-form content,” she says, “provided that you’ve done all the housekeeping in terms of channel and video optimization.”
According to Edison, YouTube is the most popular service for listening to podcasts in the United States, ahead of Spotify and Apple. So, if content creators aren’t distributing their podcasts on YouTube, they are potentially missing out.
Furthermore, “YouTube is often the first place people go when looking for a new podcast,” the platform’s blog claimed earlier this year. To aid with this discovery, in May, the company began releasing a weekly chart of YouTube’s Top 100 podcast shows in the U.S.
And as the differentiation between video and audio content continues to blur, Gen Z is driving much of this trend, Edison found. Their research stated that this age group feels that “video provides a better understanding of context/tone through facial expressions and gestures,” and it also enables consumers to feel “more connected to the podcaster(s).”
It’s big on screens of all sizes
Although the smaller screen garners a considerable amount of YouTube consumption, the growth of connected TV’s (CTV) has also been pivotal in YouTube’s continued growth.
That said, the platform is at pains to point out that this isn’t the same as “the ‘old’ television,” pointing to Shorts (which are popular on TV, just ask my kids), live streams, podcasts, sports, and full shows, as part of the platform’s content mix.
Given these findings, in an age of investment in FAST channels (Free Ad-Supported Streaming Television) it’s a reminder that brands and media companies still need to factor YouTube into their video strategies. Its TV audience is simply too big to ignore.
YouTube matters to news consumers
The variety of content on YouTube, and its reputation as a source for entertainment, influencers, and User Generated Content (UGC) can mask its popularity as a platform for news and information. New data from the Digital News Report 2025 emphasizes this. Around a third of their global sample uses YouTube (30%) for news each week, just behind Facebook (36%). Given that weekly usage of YouTube for any purpose stood at 63% this is a high percentage of global digital news consumers using the platform for news.
Source: Slide 15 of Esra Dogramaci’s presentation (see below)
In major markets such as India, the use of YouTube for news stands at more than 50%, an important consideration for international news brands seeking to gain a foothold in the world’s most populous nation. Large news audiences on the platform can also be found in other major emerging markets such as Nigeria, South Korea, the Philippines, Indonesia, and Brazil.
Making inroads into these markets won’t necessarily be easy for traditional media brands, however, as much of the consumption is centered around what the Report authors refer to as “alternative media voices.” This category includes online influencers and personalities, independent journalists, as well as politicians who can go direct to audiences, by-passing traditional media gatekeepers.
Nevertheless, given concerns about misinformation on YouTube – and other social networks – there are opportunities for trusted news and media brands to meet user needs for news and information. And they are in a position to do so in a manner that also offers the credibility that audiences desire.
Conclusion
YouTube’s reach, variety of content offerings, and resonance with younger and news audiences mean that it is an essential distribution platform for publishers in 2025. Of course, it’s not without its challenges. Around 70% of content is algorithmically recommended, meaning that YouTube’s recommendation engine can divert viewers away from publisher channels to other creators. It can also be very difficult to drive traffic from the site back to your own properties.
Yet, YouTube’s size, versatility, and reach – especially with Gen Z and teens – make it hard to overlook. Whether your goal is audience growth, revenue diversification, or brand-building, a dedicated YouTube strategy will be a must for many content creators. Publishers who invest in understanding and leveraging YouTube’s evolving ecosystem will be best positioned to thrive in the digital content landscape; and the pivotal role YouTube plays in this space.
Bringing it all together: 6 essential tips to successfully implement a YouTube strategy
Esra Dogramaci has been leading teams innovating on YouTube for more than a decade. Her experience includes leading the BBC World Service YouTube channels, through to receiving a YouTube Innovation Grant in 2023. The grant enabled her to develop and iterate on YouTube Shorts, while working as the Managing Editor at SBS, one of Australia’s public broadcasters.
In June 2025, Esra presented a session on YouTube for Changer on behalf of the Google Digital News Initiative on YouTube for busy newsrooms. The presentation is here.
Based on that presentation and our conversation, here are six practical recommendations that will enable media companies to nail their presence on YouTube.
Ditch the “Archive” Mindset: Stop treating YouTube as a mere “archive or simple video upload mechanism,” she says. Many media companies with a broadcast arm fall into the trap of “cutting and pasting TV content onto YouTube.” This material “regularly fail[s] to perform because the audiences are different.”
Meet User Needs: Success on YouTube is “less about volume, and more about understanding your audience and curating an offering that will resonate with them,” Dogramaci advises.
She highlights how former Vox producers Cleo Abram and Johnny Harris use YouTube to illustrate this. They “upload once or a few times a month and their videos will typically perform better” because “they know their audience, so they can engineer their content to perform.”
Presented in a style that “is a far cry from the buttoned down presenter reading your evening TV news bulletin,” their work remains substantial and substantive. It’s not dumbed down and connects with audiences by explaining “why this matters,” or “why you should know,” or “why this affects you.”
Prioritizing the Right Metrics: Don’t get fixated on views alone. “A view can be one second, it can be 10 minutes, it can be the same person watching a clip over and over again.” Instead, Dogramaci advises that the most important performance indicators on YouTube are watch time, subscribers, and active subscribers.
Watch time, representing the “actual amount of content consumed,” is crucial; “the more the better,” as it signals resonance and makes your video more likely to be surfaced.” Think of subscribers as your “loyal fans,” she suggests.
Engineer Every Video for Peak Performance: This means obsessing over the thumbnail, a “shop window” that must entice viewers. Your headline must be catchy, and accurate, supported by keywords, tags, and accurate video descriptions. A great banner, custom URL, and content organized into playlists, are also vital for success.
Embrace Niche and New Formats: The “best performing channels are those that know their audience and don’t try to be everything to everyone.” Even big broadcasters might see that their best-performing content is focused on niches. This content, like Deutsche Welle’s “dress code” series, can be evergreen. In contrast to broadcast, “YouTube content [often] has a much longer shelf life,” Dogramaci says.
Implement Continuous Improvement Don’t just upload and forget. Dogramaci recommends bringing different YouTube teams and channels together to learn from each other. By sharing best practices, Dogramaci helped oversee growth at 20 BBC YouTube channels, akin to “the biggest growth of any off-platform product in those years (300% in watch time and 550% in subscribers).”
In applying these principles, media leaders should avoid simply piling more work onto busy teams. “The bottom line is… always about doing less, just doing it better,” she says.
At some point in 2020, accelerated by the pandemic and the kids using endless hours of TikTok scrolling as a coping mechanism, short-form video surged into a major part of modern media consumption. Even for those of us who grew up on cable TV and later binged on Netflix, Gen Z is reshaping how we discover, consume, and engage with video content. Younger audiences have turned scrollable, snackable video into something so much more satisfying than a Quibi; it’s now a cultural mainstay.
That’s the wake-up call from our latest DCN research, Decoding Video Content Engagement: Gen Z & Gen Y in Focus, a two-part study conducted with Magid. We launched the project last year with in-depth, hour-long qualitative interviews to get a baseline on the latest language and media mindset of younger audiences. We then took a quantitative dive into what we now see as a landmark report for DCN and its member companies. To be clear: the numbers don’t just hint at a subtle shift. They chart a generational rewrite of what video means and what audiences expect it to do.
The headline? They don’t watch. They participate.
Simply put, video is no longer a passive experience characterized by a surge of short-form experiences on social platforms. Our research shows that 92% of Gen Z interacts with video on social platforms at least once a week – liking, commenting, remixing and sharing. But even more striking, nearly two-thirds (64%) of teens aged 13–17 create and post original video content weekly. Notably, this statistic drops materially to 40% for ages 18-22 (the back half of Gen Z). That’s a clarion call for those seeking to understand the expectations of the next wave of digital natives and why we labeled them “The Creator Generation” in this report.
For the youngest Gen Z users, “watching” isn’t a lean back experience. It’s a ticket to creative expression. Video isn’t something they just watch. It’s something they do. This dynamic is upending the traditional hierarchies of content and control. The line between viewer and creator is fading and with it, many of the historic relationships between storytelling, advertising, and brands.
Creators are the new gatekeepers
In the past, a media brand’s value lived in logo recognition and distribution demand. Today, particularly with the youngest audiences, it’s more likely to live in the hands of creators with cultural credibility and fluency. These individual creators are now the benchmark: remarkably they beat out all other creator types in being perceived as more creative, entertaining, interesting, and informative.
These creators are not the typical influencers posting their user-generated content to make a paycheck. They are micro media empires of all backgrounds. And they’re setting the tone for what today’s audience deems engaging, real, and worth watching. All of this accumulates in more trust.
And that trust gap is telling. While 88% of younger audiences trust friends, family, and creators, traditional brands fall significantly behind even though they’re visible. Yes, 93% of Gen Z still says they often see brand content. But awareness isn’t the same as engagement. And in a world where users can scroll past your video in a second (with a paltry three seconds being the magical sweet spot for nearly half of the young users in the research), that difference can be everything.
Authenticity isn’t a bonus – it’s the baseline
If you’re still investing in glossy, highly produced videos that feel like they came from a corporate studio instead of an actual human being – stop. The bar has moved. Individual creators are not major media brands. Think about it: People are flawed. In a world where the individual creator is more trusted, entertaining and engaging, a perfectly pressed and buttoned up production will not resonate like a rumpled shirt and bit of bedhead.
Authenticity is the baseline. When asked what they value most in video content, Gen Z chose originality, honesty, and authenticity far ahead of production value or polish. This generation can smell marketing a mile away and they’ll scroll right past it – teaching the algorithm you aren’t worth their precious time.
Instead, they want content that reflects them: unfiltered, participatory, and emotionally resonant. Think behind-the-scenes looks, first-person storytelling, raw filming, and creator collaborations that feel like a natural fit rather than transactional development deal.
So, what should media companies do?
We know the stakes are high. Premium publishers – many of whom DCN proudly represents – are once again navigating a digital ecosystem shaped by generational shifts, platform upheaval, and algorithmic opacity described to our researchers innocently as “TikTok magic.” However, this moment is also an opportunity.
Here’s how media brands can strategically respond:
1. Design for engagement, not impressions
Simply showing up isn’t enough anymore. Content needs to invite participation. Whether it’s Q&As, remixable challenges, or comment-driven formats, the most successful brands treat viewers like collaborators, not consumers.
2. Co-create with cultural insiders
Want to build trust and relevance? Partner with the creators your audience already respects. Not as brand spokespeople, but as co-storytellers. This isn’t about inserting your brand into youth culture. It’s about amplifying voices that already move your audience.
3. Reimagine platform strategy
TikTok is not YouTube. Instagram is certainly not Facebook (even if it’s the same parent company). And your content shouldn’t be a one-size-fits-all proposition. Create native video strategies that reflect the tone, pacing, and expectations of each platform. If you can’t do it everywhere at once in ways that resonate on each platform then pick your platform(s) of choice based on your content, audience and opportunity.
4. Lead with values – and humanity
Gen Z and Gen Y want entertainment. But they also care about who is behind the content. Our research confirms that younger users reward brands that are transparent, socially aware, and human. If your brand voice on social sounds like it was built by a committee, it’s time to revisit the script.
5. Build with the “SHARES” formula
If you want engagement, your video content should tap at least one of the six drivers identified by our DCN research team. Our SHARES formula – which includes Storytelling, Humor, Authenticity, Raw, Engagement, and Surprise – isn’t merely a checklist. It’s a roadmap for emotional connection and engagement.
The future Is participatory
The question isn’t whether Gen Z and Gen Y will continue to redefine video. They already have. The question is whether the larger media industry will listen.
At DCN, we believe that high-quality, trusted content is more important than ever to the future. But trust now resides in how and where you show up, not just what you say. If media brands want to stay relevant, we must not only reflect the values of these generations. We must also create space for them to shape the stories themselves.
Premium media brands like our DCN members have a powerful edge: credibility, creativity, and a direct relationship with their audiences. But competing in this new era of short-form video requires humility, agility, and a willingness to let go of legacy thinking.
Gen Z and Gen Y aren’t just watching video content—they’re rewriting the rules of engagement. That’s the big wake-up call from DCN’s latest exclusive study for our members, Decoding Video Content Engagement: Gen Z & Gen Y in Focus.
Focused on how younger audiences interact with video across YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, and X, the research reveals a seismic shift in behavior. “They don’t just watch — they engage,” the report states. This highlights how younger generations like, comment, and co-create instead of being content to passively consume. For media brands, the report offers essential intelligence that profoundly impacts the future of video strategy and audience growth.
Key research findings
DCN’s study delivers a detailed breakdown of how Gen Z and Gen Y engage across platforms, what content and creators they connect with, and how media brands can build relevance in a fragmented, fast-paced digital landscape. Among the key findings:
Younger audiences scroll fast, but they stay for authenticity. The three-second rule rules everything: Bold visuals, compelling storytelling, and authenticity are essential from frame one.
Creators are brands. Independent creators aren’t just influencers—they’re media ecosystems.
YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram lead the pack. While Facebook maintains its hold on older millennials, TikTok has Gen Z’s full attention. YouTube is the universal middle ground, but each platform demands a unique approach and longer-form content.
New rules of engagement
This research unpacks the new rules of engagement in the video landscape, analyzing everything from platform behavior to creator trust and brand perception.
Viewing behavior redefined
Gen Z and Gen Y don’t passively “watch.” They like, comment, remix, and participate. Brands that encourage interaction win their attention.
Creators are the new kingmakers
Independent creators aren’t just more trusted than traditional media, they’re setting the bar for what’s entertaining, authentic, and engaging.
Platform wars
TikTok dominates Gen Z, while Gen Y still lingers on Facebook. YouTube offers depth; Instagram delivers instant hits. Understanding this split is critical.
Vertical video power
Whether it’s News, Sports, Lifestyle, or Entertainment, content verticals play out differently across platforms and generations.
Strategic framework for media brands
“The research shows the mission hasn’t changed: build trust through quality media. But the playbook? It’s being blown up and rewritten by Gen Z,” observes DCN CEO Jason Kint. He points out that “This generation doesn’t just expect content to be authentic and human, they demand it as a price of entry or will scroll right by you. If your video strategy still feels like it was made for TV, you’re already losing. Brands will need to catch up or get left behind.”
To that end, DCN’s research report goes beyond the “what” and delivers the “how.” It identifies clear, actionable strategies for media companies to thrive:
Lead with interactivity
Brands must create video content with participation in mind—think remixable content, Q&As, duets, and challenges.
Prioritize authenticity
In a world where the raw and real outperform the overly produced, brands must sound human and feel genuine to build trust.
Embrace co-creation
Younger audiences want to participate in the content, not just watch it. Partner with creators who have cultural currency and credibility.
Use the right platform for the right story
A one-size-fits-all video strategy is no longer viable. TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook all deliver value differently—and DCN’s data shows how to play to each strength.
For this generation, video isn’t just something to watch, it’s something to do. Engagement, co-creation, and alignment with values like authenticity and cultural fluency are increasingly central to how content is received and shared.
The full research report is available to DCN members only. Register to or login to download (on desktop see top right corner of page, on mobile the top center). Download buttons will appear at the top and bottom of the page.
The hype cycle is over for Podcasting. Now that reality has set in, it is exciting to see examples of publishers pushing the podcasting envelope – experimenting to drive innovation in the maturing market. Whether it’s using AI to expand to new audiences, or smart show bundling, there’s a lot of inspiration for those with their own podcasts or looking to launch.
Here are some impressive experiments and innovations in the podcast space:
AI translations
UK news publisher The Telegraph has been producing a podcast called Ukraine: The Latest daily since the start of the war. It has been downloaded over 100 million times since 2022, with episodes exploring military strategy, history, weaponry, economics, and more.
In February, to coincide with the third anniversary of the war in Ukraine, The Telegraph launched translated versions of the podcast in Ukrainian and Russian. This was made possible using an AI-powered voice cloning and translation model. This creates a “digital likeness” of the presenters, closely mimicking the rhythm and nuance of their voices.
“To be clear, this is AI helping to present our journalism, not produce it,” said Associate Editor and presenter Dominic Nicholls in an introductory video demonstrating the technology. The translations help reach those with restricted access to news on the war, as well as expats around the world.
The AI model was adapted by The Telegraph team in-house, before being refined by a native Ukrainian speaker fluent in Russian and English. The Telegraph emphasises that all episodes will be checked to ensure translation accuracy, as well as fine-tune speed and pacing.
Although there have been experiments with AI hosts and translation, this is the first example of a media company deploying it on this scale. For a daily podcast, especially one where the information need is so critical, this is a worthwhile investment that will help it reach the people it needs to.
High quality AI translations like this will be beyond the budgets of many publishers. But as the translational tools improve and become more accessible, using AI translation to reach new audiences is worth considering. Editorial oversight, however, is vital to maintain trust and quality.
One that stood out was the DMG Media’s launch of The Crime Desk. The publisher had seen success with true crime podcasts like The Trial of Lucy Letby. Now, it has brought all podcasts under ‘The Trial’ brand into one subscription bundle.
The Crime Desk offers subscribers ad-free bonus episodes on global trial cases. It also includes access to the archive of more than 200 episodes covering everything from the Holly Willoughby kidnap plot to the Diddy trial. Subscribers will also get new series released in their entirety. However, free listeners will only be able to access one episode a week. The launch offer is £1.99 a month, or £19.99 annually.
“There will always be a free trial to air – we’ve got to have a shop window. It’s arguably a public service as well,” the Daily Mail’s head of podcasts Jamie East told Press Gazette. A soft launch phase “had seen subscriptions well into the thousands, and at a similar conversion rate to the podcast industry standard of 5%.”
Building a paid bundle around groups of podcast topics is viable for publishers that produce a wide range of podcasts or with strengths in specific subject areas. However, East noted that although they’ve had success elsewhere, that doesn’t necessarily mean a paywall is viable. “You can only really launch a subscription model around a hit. There’s no point otherwise,” he told Press Gazette. “It needs to be pretty bedded in before you can do it, or achieve such huge scale that it’s a no-brainer. We’ve not quite reached that with any of the other verticals.”
Reusing popular print content
One unusual podcast launched last year is Your History, from The Times. The newspaper has published daily obituaries for over a century, many of famous people. The team realized that there was an opportunity to highlight some of the Times’ best writing, which happens here, as well as capitalize on audience curiosity in historical figures.
The twice-weekly podcast brings out”‘remarkable tales of lives well lived,” from musicians to politicians, scientists, and sporting legends across episodes averaging 10-15 minutes. Anna Temkin, deputy obituaries editor, presents the podcast.
This is an excellent example of taking existing content and transforming it into another medium. The obituaries pages of newspapers contain a wealth of fascinating life stories, especially when someone well-known dies. By simply reading out the obituary – a low tech and low cost solution – The Times makes this content accessible and relevant to a new audience who aren’t necessarily newspaper subscribers.
Podcasting has room for innovation
Reader revenue is an important strand for each of these publications. The Telegraph and The Times both have hard paywalls, and use podcasts as a top-of-funnel strategy to introduce listeners to their journalism. In these cases, applying strategies that help widen listenership through translation or opening up paywalled content is key.
Although the Daily Mail has some paywalled content, the majority is accessible to read for free. This allows the podcasts to build up a large audience.In this case, The Daily Mail has created a paid bundle around popular shows to monetize a smaller but more dedicated fan base.
The extent to which other publishers can use these tactics will depend on where podcasts sit strategically. If they’re a “shop window” to showcase journalism, it is worth exploring options to leverage podcasts to expand audiences. However, podcasts also have great power as a retention tool superserving a publisher’s most loyal readers. With continued experimentation and innovation, podcasts offer the potential to grow audiences and support, or even build, direct revenue. That’s not hype; that’s just smart strategy.
In any enduring relationship—whether it’s a marriage, a business partnership, or a loyal audience—some truths always apply. Trust matters. Communication is key. And one-size-fits-all approaches rarely work.
Today’s digital landscape is full of shifting audience expectations, platform dependencies, privacy regulations, and revenue challenges. In the midst of it all, one thing is increasingly clear: the future belongs to publishers who treat visitor relationships as living, evolving engagements…not just transactions.
It’s time to put relationships at the center of publishing strategy.
The relationship is the product
Visitors are not anonymous “traffic.” Your audiences are composed of individual people—each with different motivations, levels of loyalty, and preferred ways to engage. Treating them all the same? That’s the digital equivalent of proposing on the first date or ignoring someone you’ve known for years. It doesn’t work in personal life, and it doesn’t work with audiences.
Instead, think of each visitor relationship as a continuum. One person may be discovering your content for the first time; another may visit daily but hasn’t subscribed. Some may be loyal readers who want more ways to support you. Others may be disengaged and at risk of vanishing without a trace.
What’s needed is a thoughtful approach that reflects where each audience member is in their journey. Then, you need a plan to help grow that relationship over time.
Relationship lessons from everyday life
Here are a few lessons from personal relationships that publishers would do well to apply:
1. Listen first
In healthy relationships, both sides listen. Media companies often prioritize outbound messages—popups, banners, promos. But listening to behavioral signals is just as important.
Did a visitor just land on your site for the first time? Did they browse for three minutes without clicking? Did they just turn off an adblocker? These are signals—not of conversion intent, but of where the conversation should begin.
2. Start small, build trust
Relationships grow over time. The first ask shouldn’t be a subscription or donation. Instead, start with lightweight value exchanges: newsletter signups, social follows, or app downloads. These are the handshakes before the deeper commitments.
Progressive engagement models—where the ask aligns with the visitor level of loyalty and readiness—see higher conversion rates and lower churn.
3. Consent is foundational
In both personal and digital relationships, consent builds trust. That means transparent data practices, well-timed privacy prompts, and respecting visitor preferences. Publishers who embrace consent-centric strategies don’t just comply with regulations—they strengthen their credibility.
4. Don’t take loyalty for granted
Just like personal relationships can fade from neglect, even the most loyal visitor can drift away if their experience stagnates. Stale content, repeated prompts, or poor mobile UX can erode the goodwill built over time.
Check in. Refresh the value you offer. Make loyal readers feel recognized and rewarded.
The risk of losing touch
When visitor relationships aren’t nurtured, the costs show up as:
Declining newsletter engagement
High bounce rates
Flat or falling subscription growth Low registration rates
Increasing reliance on third-party platforms to reach your own audience
These aren’t just performance issues. They’re signs of a deeper relationship breakdown.
The case for an audience relationship strategy
Most publishers have dedicated teams for content strategy, ad ops, and subscriber acquisition. But few have a centralized visitor relationship strategy—one that spans from first touch to paid conversion, and integrates consent, engagement, and retention into a cohesive journey.
Some in the industry have begun exploring Visitor Relationship Management (VRM) as a strategic framework—an emerging category aimed at helping publishers track, measure, and grow these relationships intentionally.
Whether through dedicated platforms or custom-built workflows, the goal is the same: shift from transactional tactics to long-term relationship building.
What makes relationships thrive
So, what does a healthy publisher–visitor relationship look like?
Mutual value: Readers get great content and respectful experiences; publishers earn loyalty and support.
Respect: Visitors are seen as individuals, not metrics.
Growth mindset: The relationship is always evolving—there are new ways to engage, contribute, or connect.
Shared purpose: Visitors feel part of something bigger, whether it’s supporting journalism, joining a community, or getting smarter about a topic they care about.
In a world of fleeting clicks and algorithm-driven content, relationships may be the most enduring competitive advantage publishers can build.
The publishing industry is no longer just about content. It’s about connection.
By learning from the fundamentals of human relationships—listening, trust, consent, and progressive commitment—publishers can build visitor experiences that not only drive revenue but inspire long-term loyalty.
After all, when visitors feel known, valued, and respected, they don’t just return.
The world of news is changing – and the pace of transformation isn’t slowing anytime soon. As social media commands ever-increasing attention and content creators continue to gain traction, it’s no surprise that audiences are switching from broadcast news or reading an article to hearing a 30-second news synopsis on TikTok. In fact, companies like Influencer Journalism are already actively working to connect legacy media with influencers, while others like NBCUniversal have announced mobile-first news initiatives.
To keep up with evolving preferences, it’s vital that legacy media adapts, and news executives remain tuned into to audience expectations. That means learning from those who have found success from social media. News influencers, who are content creators that post about current events and happenings, are already popular with young audiences. And their preferences will undoubtedly shape the future of news.
Here are five tips from three successful, TikTok news influencers that media organizations can learn from, and put to work, as they build their audience growth strategies.
1. More fun, less complicated
News influencer @SmallTownIndiana, 48, who is located in Indianapolis – and refrains from using his real name to protect his privacy – has garnered about 179,500 followers on TikTok. He posts videos about local happenings and breaking news in Indiana.
He says that when it comes to viewer engagement, legacy media should focus on being a little less serious and a lot more comprehensible.
In fact, SmallTownIndiana says that after the January TikTok ban, his news stories no longer perform best on his account; it’s those like his series about finding the state’s best pork tenderloin sandwich that do better. The serious news topic that does perform is related to the high-profile Delphi murders, involving two teenage girls, which he also has a series about. Videos related to both of these topics have garnered over 100,000 views.
Although incorporating fun isn’t possible for every news story, especially those that are sensitive, it is important to balance serious topics with lighter ones, or perhaps create social content that is centered on lighter material or approaches. And for almost any topic, simplifying subjects and making them accessible will help engage broader audiences.
2. Short form news delivery
Another point that SmallTownIndiana cited was that traditional media organizations have the tendency to give people information in large doses and deep dives. For example, broadcast news requires people to sit through a 30-minute to one-hour long newscast to see what they are interested in. Yet, many news consumers want their information delivered conveniently and quickly.
“TikTok, to me, it has landed at a time where people are always on the go,” he said.
SmallTownIndiana said that his TikTok page gets a lot of traction because he relays information about what’s happening in his city or state in less than two minutes. As a result, he said, many viewers have told him that they come to his page first if a newsworthy event is happening. This is evident in his view count, which consistently sits in the thousands range.
His big takeaway is to think about ways in which audiences can find what they are interested in easily and consume it in a quick, easily digestible way.
3. Prioritize authenticity
Twenty-seven-year-old news influencer @_imjustzander, who has nearly 224,000 followers on TikTok, advises legacy media to appeal to Generation Z and Millennials in a respectful, yet authentic way. “People are smart, especially Gen Z,” said Zander (who prefers to use only his first name for privacy reasons). “They know when companies are trying too hard.”
Zander, who is located in Georgia, has been creating content since 2020 and makes videos primarily focused on political and global news. His experience growing an audience has shown him that authenticity is key.
His videos are quick-hitting and timely. He posts about six to eight times a day, while working a full-time job. He says his legal background has helped him succeed when talking to an audience on social media – and that news companies need to hone their communication style to resonate with their values, especially in the digital age.
“The pendulum is always swinging when it comes to social media,” he said. “And right now the pendulum has swung to where people just crave authenticity. People are so done with influencers; people are so done with just all of this over-professionalism.”
For legacy media, Zander believes that means leaning less into trends, which come and go quickly. Instead, they should focus on topics that are important to younger generations and do so in a way that respects their perspective.
4. Allow reporters to be real people
Fortesa Laitifi – @hifortesa – is a 31-year-old Los Angeles based news influencer who posts videos about politics, abortion rights, and the lives of child influencers. Given her background in journalism, which she received a master’s degree in, and her success in garnering an audience of about 42,500 followers on TikTok, she advises legacy media to have their reporters post on social media.
“Legacy media needs to meet people where they are,” said Latifi. “Either you want people to consume your stories or you don’t.” And to do that, they need to be present on social media not hidden behind a masthead.
Latifi cited The New York Times as an example, as the publication has seen success on TikTok and received hundreds of thousands of views by having its reporters explain their stories.
Another way for legacy media to accomplish this, she said, could be by having a designated TikTok person who posts videos. Dave Jorgenson from The Washington Post was one of the first and remains one of the best. With his presence on TikTok, the newspaper has amassed 1.8 million followers. “That really changed the way people think about TikTok and news,” she said.
Beyond simply building a younger audience, Latifi says that misinformation is an important reason journalists need to be on TikTok. In a time where it is easy for fake news to run rampant, she points out that is crucial for people to have reliable sources of news, no matter where they consume it.
5. Consistency is key
Given the impact of algorithms and virality, an important component is posting consistently on social media. According to Latifi, it is crucial to spend a lot of time on TikTok to get to know the platform and figure out which videos perform well.
As with other social platforms, posting consistently is essential to build a relationship with an audience and build a habit, where they are looking for the content on a regular basis. It is also critical to engage and learn from comments to cater to audience needs.
“People might think it’s a lot of effort and it is a lot of effort, but young people, we know from the data, are getting their news from places like TikTok, from places like Instagram,” she said.
Additionally, finding a niche or area of expertise can be beneficial. Latifi, for example, gets tagged in videos related to family vlogging because of her content about them, which receive thousands of views.
Ultimately, she says, it’s in the hands of legacy media to meet their audiences where they are. “We can grunt and groan about how the kids aren’t reading newspapers, or whatever. The important thing is that they do want to hear the news,” said Latifi.
See the big picture
News in this era is a delicate balance of finding new ways to attract audiences while also staying true to impartiality and delivering truthful, fact-based information. While social media connections are heavily reliant on authenticity and being personable, traditional journalists must simultaneously focus on maintaining professionalism and accuracy in their reporting.
Despite changes in news consumption habits, long-form content is still going strong, given its ability to tell in-depth, meaningful stories. But that doesn’t mean that short-form content shouldn’t be leveraged as a means of getting people there.
The 2025 DCN Next Summit kicked off in Miami April 22 with an energizing atmosphere as senior media executives from DCN’s member companies came together to discuss the biggest issues and opportunities impacting the future of media.
In his welcome, DCN CEO Jason Kint highlighted the challenging environment the media finds itself in. “Let’s be honest, the last 12 months have been volatile,” Kint said, “And the volatility isn’t just economic, it’s institutional. The forces testing our economy are also now testing our democratic norms, including a free and plural press itself. [We face] a direct challenge to the independence of the press and the principle that journalists, not governments, get to determine the language of truth.”
This, Kint said, is the new normal: accelerated pressure, relentless power grabs and heightened scrutiny all at once. “It’s messy, it’s uncomfortable, and it’s redefining the rules that we all play by.”
In the midst of this, Kint highlighted premium content still matters but what defines it is changing. “Growth is harder, but it is possible, especially as you strengthen your direct relationships with your audience and customers. Trust… is everything. It’s foundational and it must be defended. And, in times of vulnerability is when you build on it.”
While the topics of discussion both on stage and off were wide-ranging, three significant themes emerged: the importance and evolution of trust, the value of direct audience relationships, and new influencer dynamics impacting media brands.
Trust in a fragmented world
In an era where audience attention is fragmented across numerous platforms, trust is the core value exchange between a media brand and its audience. Katherine Maher, president and CEO of NPR, emphasized the importance of maintaining editorial independence and impartiality as essential components of trust.
Katherine Maher, president and CEO of NPR
She said, “Our editorial independence is paramount. People listen to NPR and they care about public media because they trust it and they know that it is independent. To my mind, if we cannot maintain that editorial integrity, we cannot serve our audiences the way we need to be served.”
This foundational trust faces new challenges. New research from DCN and Magid on Gen Z’s video consumption reveals a significant difference in trust levels between individual creators and brands, with individual creators generally being perceived as more trustworthy. The study, called “Decoding Video Content Engagement,” talked to 1,000 young people aged 13-40, to understand how they saw media brands. The results (available to DCN members) suggests that Gen Z’s understanding of what is trustworthy is evolving based on where they spend their time and energy.
“When you talk to Gen Z, it’s the individual that’s most valued. It’s the influencers, it’s the streamers,” Andrew Hare, SVP, head of quantitative research at Frank N. Magid Associates explained to attendees. Media companies face a significant challenge in building trust with Gen Z and Gen Y, and being seen as trustworthy, authentic and interesting, compared to individual creators, who are overwhelmingly trusted more by these generations.
Hare mentioned an opportunity for digital media companies to “collaborate and co-create with creators themselves to maybe even add some trust back to the brands.” He noted that digital media companies must focus on humanizing their brands, fostering direct relationships with audiences, and finding ways to be real and relatable while upholding their journalistic standards.
The evolving role of creators
Discussions at the summit frequently touched upon the evolving role of journalists in today’s media landscape and the rise of individual creators/influencers as a force in news. According to a November 2024 study by the Pew Research Center, 21% of U.S. adults now regularly get news from influencers. This figure rises to 37% among those under 30—an age group that is increasingly difficult for traditional outlets to reach.
Tiffany Sam Chow, SVP, strategy and business development at NBCU News
Tiffany Sam Chow, SVP, strategy and business development at NBCU News Group, pointed out that news anchors are becoming personalities on platforms like TikTok, which allows them to build individual connections with audiences. This shift changes the role of anchors from authoritative figures to relatable personalities, she explained.
Chow cites the example of Savannah Sellers on TikTok. “She does these behind the scenes where people can understand her as a person,” Chow explained. “People start following her on social as a person and then start following her on social as a news anchor.” As people engage with the on-air talent on a personal level, they begin following them as journalists, and in turn, engage with the NBC News and Today Show handles, Chow said.
Sam Felix, SVP, Strategic Partnerships & Business Development, at CNN echoed this shift. She noted CNN has also been thinking about how to drive that relationship between their on-air talent and audiences. “Part of our superpower is our ability to produce video at scale and this amazing talent. We have the right ingredients to engage with this audience. But we have to figure out (how) to pull back the curtain, get them sort of like closer, one-on-one, with this audience in a way that they seek us.”
In addition to their shows, CNN personalities produce multiple vertical videos per day, published on social channels and on CNN’s platform, Felix said. “Over the next several months, as you see the kind of next phase of CNN come out into the world, you’ll see that same type of production format be at the center of the content and our products, because it is resonating.”
MLB’s VP, Social Media and Innovation Cameron Gidari noted that some baseball creators are as popular, if not more so, than baseball players “kids are recognizing them!” Thus, their strategy involves empowering these creators. “We have a really robust crop of up and coming baseball creators,” Cameron. “They’re non-traditional media for a new age.”
MLB’s creator strategy involves helping empower creators, to help them grow, giving them access to events and sharing their content. “We went to help them grow because we know that they’re Baseball Tonight for the next generation, right?”
Building deeper connections with direct relationships
Publishers have long held direct relationships with audiences, built on trust and high-quality content. These relationships allow media companies to understand and anticipate audience needs. Strategic insights also inform monetization strategies like subscriptions, events and advertising.
In 2025, strengthening direct relationships with audiences has never been more critical. As media companies expand beyond traditional advertising into licensing and other D2C strategies, deepening audience connections is essential for sustainable growth.
Daniel Alegre, CEO, TelevisaUnivision
CEO Daniel Alegre credits his company’s success to TelevisaUnivision’s vast Spanish-language content catalog, built over 80 years, which helps nurture a direct, multi-platform relationship with audiences. TelevisaUnivision integrated its operations and created a single content strategy that serves linear TV in both the U.S. and Mexico and ViX, its streaming platform.
Alegre noted that the company continues to innovate in video content to engage new audiences. They are developing one-minute “micro telenovelas” specifically designed for mobile consumption. “These are essentially made for the phone, and can create new commercialization opportunities for subscription and advertising … We can also work on microtransactions,” he said.
At the Athletic, Publisher David Perpich explained that the company is exploring partnerships to leverage its content and audience, including a partnership with MGM which integrated betting coverage, and Stubhub which allowed users to purchase tickets within The Athletic’s content.
And in a move that is certain to be a fan favorite, MLB formed a “partnership with eBay where we have a collectibles vertical and you can buy on eBay,” he said. The focus of these initiatives is on “how do we create content that consumers would love but then let’s figure out the right business model on the other side to take advantage of it.”
Relationships are also changing between media companies, brands and advertisers, with a greater emphasis on direct relationships and mission alignment.
Shannon Watkins, CMO, Fiserv
Shannon Watkins, chief marketing officer at Fiserv, explained that Fiserv increasingly bypasses media agencies, instead partnering directly with media companies, viewing them as extensions of their own marketing team. This direct model allows Fiserv to keep strategy development in-house while collaborating with media partners to execute.
“It’s less about the dollars and cents and more about that symbiosis that you can have with your partner media or otherwise, where it is a true mission alignment because then the conversation moves beyond placements and dollars, but how can we grow together? And that’s what we’re looking for,” she said.
Persevering and pushing forward
As digital media companies grapple with the challenge of maintaining trust amid increased scrutiny and competition from more personalized, often more relatable creators, the importance of direct, authentic relationships with audiences has never been clearer. Media are learning to adapt to this shifting landscape, where collaboration with creators can help rebuild trust while still maintaining journalistic integrity.
Media companies must evolve to stay relevant. However, they must also safeguard the foundational values that have long underpinned their role in society, including press freedom. This Summit highlighted how they are persisting through challenges. As Kint pointed out, “We must keep pushing for fair value, for IP protection, for a level playing field, in equal competition. And above all we must defend the role of a free and plural press at a moment when institutions are being tested from every angle, even at the highest office in the land.”
Differences in international and generational media preferences inform evolving technology and industry patterns and continue to keep things interesting in 2025. Conventional media categories are becoming more fluid, inviting new opportunities. A new report by Nielsen Media Analytics, the 2025 Global Media Planning Guide, provides actionable insights.
Overall, an accelerating trend is the convergence of multiple platforms – from streaming services to social media. This presents significant challenges:
Adapting to current generational media preferences. Different age groups engage with media uniquely across various markets, calling for customized strategies.
Understanding international users’ media habits. Media trends and the pace of transition differ across countries, requiring flexible approaches.
Harmonizing traditional and digital media. It’s essential to allocate investments effectively across established and emerging platforms.
Streaming audiences vary internationally
According to Nielson’s data, traditional TV remains the dominant choice among older U.S. audiences and some countries outside of the U.S., while U.S. residents in general, and younger audiences around the world, are gravitating increasingly towards digital media. Connected TV (CTV) reach has steadily surpassed live and time-shifted TV reach over the past few years, but total use of the television has remained steady since the first quarter of 2022, demonstrating its resilience.
The specifics vary significantly across global markets, however. Take Poland versus the U.S., for example. In the U.S., CTV devices and streaming services have become the dominant viewing method. Whereas, in Poland, traditional TV remains the primary viewing platform. Only about 8% of total viewing time in Poland was spent on streaming in the first half of 2024, according to the Nielson data. In the U.S., streaming accounted for around 40% of TV viewership during the same period.
Americans spent about half of their TV viewership on broadcast and cable combined. In Poland, the combination of satellite and cable amounted to almost two-thirds of viewing time. U.S. audiences spent 38% of their time on streaming- significantly more than Polish viewers at 22%. The data emphasizes the need for flexible global media strategies, with traditional and digital platforms coexisting to meet diverse audience preferences.
Streaming audiences vary across generations
As younger audiences worldwide gravitate toward digital media, older generations retain their preference for traditional television. In the U.S., individuals aged 2-34 spend more than 60% of their TV viewing time on streaming platforms. Those ages 50-64 spent well over half of their time on broadcast and cable TV as opposed to streaming, while those 65+ spent fully 75% of their viewing time on broadcast and cable TV combined, and less than a quarter on streaming media.
In Thailand, a similar pattern prevails, with adults over 40 preferring TV to social media or video streaming platforms. Gen Z shows the lowest preference for traditional TV viewership of all age groups in Thailand (47%), favoring digital alternatives, whereas the 55+ demographic exhibits the highest linear TV viewership (62%), according to Nielson’s data.
However, it’s important to note that older viewers generally watch significantly more total TV compared to younger audiences. This holds true in the U.S. as well as Thailand, where all types of media have a greater reach among older audiences. According to a recent Deloitte report, Boomers spent an average of 3.5 hours per day watching TV shows and movies on streaming video services, cable, or live-streaming TV, while Gen Z audiences spent about 2.1 hours per day on those activities.
This dynamic has implications not only for how content is consumed but also how it is created, delivered, and marketed. As digital natives grow up, they are driving a new era of on-demand streaming, mobile media consumption, and personalized content algorithms. Meanwhile, the media industry must continue to accommodate older people, who remain loyal to traditional formats and are often heavy consumers of media. For example, older generations are more likely to keep their cable or satellite TV subscriptions long-term, while Generation Z and millennial cable subscribers are more than twice as likely to indicate that they plan to terminate their subscriptions within the year, according to Deloitte’s 2025 Digital Media Trends report.
Why some audiences still prefer linear TV
Linear TV retains some advantages in addition to the loyalty of older and international audiences, as pointed out by Vijya Amirtham on VPlayed. It is conducive to live events, such as sports, games, and award shows, which have massive appeal to large audiences. Linear TV also enables targeting by advertisers based on channel, genre, and airtime. Viewers tend to find TV ads more credible, especially on trusted channels, and are conditioned to expect ads when watching linear TV. Amirtham also asserts linear TV audiences “are predominantly associated with affluent groups.”
Boundaries between traditional TV and digital media are blurring with the evolution of Cloud TV and Over-the-Top-Television (OTT)- traditional TV content such as series and movies watched over the internet. These technologies are enticing viewers by combining the benefits of linear TV and more fluid digital mediums that offer on-demand viewing and are sometimes free of traditional ads. Amirtham recommends developing a linear TV app as one method for media leaders to expand and enhance audience engagement.
Maintaining and growing audiences
As DCN previously reported, younger generations are gravitating towards streaming services and social platforms and away from traditional TV. However, while media companies keep a keen eye on Gen Z trend-shapers, it is also wise to accommodate mature and international audiences, who are loyal and heavy consumers of traditional media formats.
For media leaders, it’s still too soon to abandon linear—if the goal is to reach the widest audience possible. Instead, deliver integrated solutions that merge linear TV and streaming assets, while working to enhance cross-platform integration. Effective strategies across age groups, international markets, and media platforms will depend on accurate measurement, outreach, and partnerships. The growing convergence of platforms invites opportunities to cultivate deeper connections with viewers around the world.
