The news is not going anywhere. It remains, and will remain, an essential part of young people’s lives in 2030.
“If I want to form an opinion about something, which I think is really important, if you want to live in today's world, you can't ignore the news.”
Dev, 23
Male, Bangalore
However, what is also apparent is that the news information needs and preferences of the next generation have evolved, and continue to evolve. We encourage incumbent and emerging news producers to pay attention to these generational differences so that they can play a role in delivering on the news needs of this next generation of audiences.
In this section, we summarise six overarching opportunities for news producers moving into 2030. These opportunities are based on what we determine as the most important gaps within the Ideal News Experience section (based on what we heard throughout our research).
Building affinity with audiences
The next generation wants to feel seen and represented by the media industry. News producers can realise this opportunity by building affinity with the next generation of news consumers.
Research participant
“I don’t trust traditional news sources, I have people for that.”
Trevor, 21
Non-binary, Chicago
Advisory Board
“What if publishing brands could take a music label approach to aggregating these creators?”
Lucky Gunasekara, Co-Founder & CEO,
Miso AI
To make this a reality, news producers can:
Partner with independent creators who align with the news producer’s mission and have loyal audiences. For example, Morning Brew has built a ‘Creator Programme’ that allows social media personalities to partner with the company while remaining independent.
Elevate individual journalists within the organisation to create personal brands and spaces for them to speak directly to audiences. Taylor Lorenz (a leading columnist at the Washington Post) is a successful example of executing this strategy within an established news producer.
Enhancing personalisation & customised experiences
The next generation wants personalised and customised news experiences that still allow them to explore and feel in the driver’s seat.
Research participant
“My ideal delivery form is something I can easily customise - that gives me exactly what I want and tells me the things that are most important.”
Longji, 25
Male, Lagos
Advisory Board
“Even if the users don't understand [TikTok’s algorithm], there is very clearly a desire to be a part of an environment that knows them so well.”
Kirsten Eddy, Senior Researcher
Pew Research Center
To make this a reality, news producers can:
Leverage generative AI to ‘hand over’ control of formats to consumers. For example, the BBC has been working on a flexible media tool that adapts content and formats to an individual’s personal preferences.
Allow for more sophisticated customisation capabilities that are better suited to the Next Gen’s needs and expectations. For example, several news apps, including Axios, now allow consumers to customise their own news feed algorithm.
Developing socially friendly content to build direct relationships
The next generation wants news to meet them where they already are and to match their ever-increasing expectations for seamless user experiences.
Research participant
“Whatever news makes it to Instagram is what I’m going to get…”
Olivia, 23
Female, Birmingham
Advisory Board
“We place a great amount of emphasis on selecting topics that are interesting and also invest time in ensuring a strong thumbnail/branding for the video to make it approachable despite being a deep-dive.”
Jack Kelly, Founder & Content Creator,
TLDR News
To make this a reality, news producers can:
Mimic the formats and user experiences on social media platforms, including short-form videos. The Verge, for example, launched a new homepage featuring a Twitter-like feature that offers readers a comprehensive, curated rundown of the most important tech stories of the day.
Create compelling content that is intertwined with social media experiences. Immersive storytelling publisher Seen does this by utilising augmented reality tools such as filters and lenses on Snap and Instagram, to tell stories in a new way.
Create pathways that transition young audiences from social media consumers to direct consumers over time. For example, The Nudge, a London-based publisher, encourages audiences to sign up to exclusive events or discounts for restaurants via its social channels to collect data on its audiences.
Modernising language
The next generation wants the news to be more accessible so that they can meaningfully engage with it, without feeling ashamed or lost.
Research participant
“I have a degree and I subscribe to the New York Times… and I am still like, ‘I don’t know that I’m smart enough’ to be intaking this information’.”
Hope, 23
Female, Chicago
Industry Expert
“Is this easy to understand? Is my message conveyed in an understandable way, without a lot of explanation needed? Are there multiple entry points (e.g. summaries/timelines)? Is there lots of jargon?”
Ethar El-Katatney, News Product Strategy Lead for the Americas
Bloomberg LP
To make this a reality, news producers can:
Produce news that’s simple but not simplistic. For example, The News Movement created a video ‘introduction series’ to the War in Ukraine to help provide context and history to young audiences.
Experiment with different tones. John Oliver’s Last Week Tonight has been a pioneer of this approach, demonstrating how humour can be a way to engage with ‘hard news’ topics.
Catering to different modes of consumption
The next generation wants news experiences to fit naturally into their daily lives.
Research participant
“I prefer reading shorter articles online that give the gist of what is happening…”
Harpreet, 23
Male, Bangalore
Advisory Board
“[News should be] a consistent conversation between news producers and their community… to make sure that it's fitting those gaps”
Carolyn Powers, Director for US Programs,
Internews
To make this a reality, news producers can:
Develop products that are designed around audience modes. For example, Inshorts India’s app caters to young consumers in the Sift mode of consumption, where they are trying to quickly filter through information, by offering 60-word summaries of news stories.
Giving hope & empowering action
The next generation wants to feel motivated and inspired by the news they consume to make the world a better place.
Research participant
“[News producers] just keep giving us bad news. There is never any solution. Why should I only keep reading about terrible things happening around me?”
Jinal, 23
Female, Bangalore
Industry Expert
“[Solutions journalism] doesn’t celebrate responses to problems, or advocate for specific ones; they cover them, investigating what was done and what the evidence says worked and didn’t work about it, and why.”
[Source: Solutions Journalism Network]
To make this a reality, news producers can:
Onboard the next generation in a way that promotes a healthy relationship between the news and consumers. For example, Tortoise Media has intentionally slowed down the process of creating and distributing journalism to make people feel more informed, as opposed to overwhelmed.
Adopt tones and formats that provide solutions, instigate action, and develop hope amongst young people. Future Crunch (now named Fix The News) is a good example of a newsletter that intentionally takes an optimistic view on world progression.
Make the news participatory by interacting directly with the next generation and facilitating discussion. For example, Mutante hosts participatory events with audiences to inform their news agenda.
