Nic Newman’s latest edition of Journalism, Media, and Technology Trends and Predictions 2022 is out. While there’s nothing specific on India or the travails of Indian media, the report reminds us that the challenges we are facing is largely not just an India-only one.
Newman believes that there is a generational change afoot in digital newsrooms, a fact that might be true in India too. But he believes that this change is leading to more “internal soul-searching in newsrooms over diversity and inclusion.” If it is true, the generational change should be welcomed. Let us hope that in 2022 there will be women, minorities, and Dalits in leadership position in India.
While believing that traditional new organisation are “relentlessly” focussing on transforming themselves into digital outfits, revenues by charging for online news might face the challenge of subscription fatigue, even as the economy worsens.
One development that the report predicts is the possibility of publishers starting to work together to “lobby on policy, more advertising and common login initiatives, joint investigations, and more content sharing.” Some of these which we’ve started seeing in India.
Revenue
- Publishers three or four different revenue streams will be important
- Revenue from tech platforms for content licensing or innovation
- Philanthropic funds and foundations
- Events business
Acquisitions is to route for many Media companies to “add scale and value to their subscription or advertising businesses,” is a possibility, according to the report.
The onward march of charging for content will “open up opportunities for individual journalists and co-operatives” to hog the limelight.
With attempts to regulate market power and social impact of Big Tech, some expectation of improvement in journalism
Some publishers said that they will pay less attention to FB and Twitter but more effort towards Instagram, TikTok and Youtube
Climate Change although pressing is complex and multi-faceted story which newsroom heads feel is “hard to get mainstream audiences to take notice of a story that moves slowly and can often make audiences feel depressed.”
The influence of celebrities and influencers will continue grow, and take attention away from news media
Many believed they would be spending their money and time on improving existing products, while a third of the newsroom leaders surveyed planned to launch new products and brand extensions. Voice, VR and AR are possible direction of innovation, but they still are not priority areas this year.
The prediction VR headsets, smart blocks for the metaverse and new ways of work-related interactions might be things we will see in the technology space. The cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are likely to a matter of keen interest too.
The one big thrust in online journalism, apart from myriad other fields, is Artificial Intelligence. According to the Journalism, Media, and Technology Trends and Predictions 2022 report, more than eight-in-ten of the respondents felt that AI “will be important for better content recommendations. AI might well be the answer to the old challenge to retain users on the website by providing with relevant links. Almost equally important was newsroom automation. Artificial Intelligence as panache of many of journalism’s ills is here to stay.
