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Younger audiences want more ‘fun news’, industry chiefs told

Nic NewmanA journalism researcher has suggested traditional news brands need to more closely associate themselves with “fun news” in order to attract a younger audience

Nic Newman, senior research associate at the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, told an industry conference there was a “disconnect” between young people and the news media in general.

Nic, pictured, also told the Behind Local News conference in Birmingham that news publishers are set to invest more resources in podcasting this year – after research revealed a 40pc increase in podcast listening across the UK last year.

A recent RSIJ study found the increase was “driven by a younger, plugged-in generation looking for information, entertainment and distraction”.

Speaking at the conference, organised by the Behind Local News website and podcasting platform Laudable, Nic said: “There is a disconnect with younger audiences. They want useful, interesting, fun news. Things traditional news brands may not be associated with.”

Ed Walker, editor-in-chief of Reach plc’s hyperlocal platform In Your Area, acknowledged that it was something local media needed to get better at.

Posting on Twitter he wrote: “Younger audiences want to read what’s useful, interesting and fun. I think regional and local media needs to work on the fun part.”

During his keynote speech, Nic also looked ahead to how the industry might look in 2030, predicting among other things that there will be ‘fewer, better media companies’ and that AI would be a standard presence in newsrooms.

Quizzed on his thoughts about the future of print, he said: “Print will still be around as a niche product which will sell less, like a lot of things, but won’t disappear.

“People will hang on to it because it’s still a unique product which adds value for a lot of people.”

Discussing podcasting, he added: “It’s a really convenient, frictionless medium. When we talked to publishers this year about where they’re investing, a huge number said podcasts. Advertisers are interested in podcasts.

“[Podcasts] are very in tune with journalists because journalists like to chat, and they’re very good at it., so I think that could really work with local newsrooms.”

8 comments

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  • January 24, 2020 at 11:57 am
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    Seems like an appropriate moment to give Mr Newman “a disconnect”.

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  • January 24, 2020 at 12:00 pm
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    Give ’em what you think they want. Sooner or later, – possibly too late – you and they will discover that fun “news” isn’t actually what they want at all.

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  • January 24, 2020 at 12:35 pm
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    Because giving ‘them’ what we felt ‘they’ wanted worked out really well didn’t it?

    Please don’t leave us, Jeff Jones, we’d miss your searing wit and insight.

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  • January 24, 2020 at 3:12 pm
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    If the future of journalism is in the hands of people like this, heaven alone help us….

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  • January 24, 2020 at 3:29 pm
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    I’ve never been that keen on “April Fool” stories especially when they’re two months early.

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  • January 24, 2020 at 5:02 pm
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    IMHO (one for the younguns there) there’s enough ‘fun’ wacky text speak content out there already passing itself off as news looking for likes and clicks, we certainly don’t need any more,if anything the opposite.

    Perhaps a timely reminder is needed for these research associates, editors in chief and media experts that we are, or are supposed to be,in the NEWS business as providers of engaging and relevant local NEWS.

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