What Is the State of the Media in 2023?

Cision recently released its 14^th annual State of the Media report, which surveyed more than 3,100 journalists about current perceptions of the accelerating evolution of media, shifting platforms, the economic pressures impacting newsrooms all over the world, and more.

The report, available in its entirety here, had some interesting findings:

• 27% believe the biggest challenge for journalism in the past 12 months has been being seen as a trusted news source and/or combating accusations of “fake news” with lack of staffing (20%) and declining advertising (20%) close behind.
• 38% believe the biggest challenge for them as journalists in the past 12 months has been keeping up amid downsizing and lack of resources .
• 40% of journalists say they are relying more on data this year (views, engagement, demographic data, etc.) to shape their editorial strategy than they have in previous years.
• The number of journalists who indicated they’ve used web polls and surveys has more than doubled, going from 16% to 34%, underscoring journalists’ increased efforts to both engage with and understand their audiences.
• 96% of journalists use social media for work-related reasons, such as content promotion and audience interaction, and 66% responded that they use it to source content.
• 75% of journalists reported that they will block a media relations professional who spams them with countless irrelevant pitches, and conversely the overwhelming majority say that above anything else, they are most impressed when a media relations professional has clearly taken the time to understand them, their audience, and content that they would find relevant.

Clearly, journalists are being pulled in many different directions and being tasked with more responsibilities (obtaining data, sourcing visuals, et al) on top of simply telling important stories and breaking news. Smart PR teams understand this and are working on building deeper relationships already so that they may anticipate needs and serve as trusted resources for years to come.

Connect with us here to learn how we focus on creating, maintaining, and growing these critical relationships on behalf of our firm and our clients each day.