Meet the Future of News

At Stagwell, we believe a thriving news industry is not only the foundation of a healthy democracy, but also a critical platform for marketers and advertisers. However, recent discourse around brand safety – the effort of protecting a brand’s reputation by controlling it’s proximity of damaging content – has disproportionately hurt the news industry, as advertisers back from of news due to misconceptions and an abundence of caution. To debunk these assumptions, Stagwell launched the Future of News Initiative, with the goal of reinvigoration the relationship between news and marketing.

Instead of feeding the vicious cycle of news demonetization that hurts quality journalism the most, advertisers should kickstart a virtuous cycle of investing in news that allows brands to reach valuable audiences and gives quality news content the financial stability it needs to thrive.”

– Mark Penn, Chair & CEO

WHAT WE DO

The Future of News Initiative brings together a coalition of news media and marketing industry leaders for fulsome discussions about the opportunities for news media, rooted in groundbreaking research. Together, journalists, publishers and brand leaders identify opportunities for industry growth and partnership, showcasing news as an essential tool for driving successful business results.

Where To Find Us:

Advertising Week

Oct. 8 & 10

D.C. Summit

Nov. 14

Publisher Summit

Jan. 29

Where To Find Us:


Advertising Week	Oct. 8 & 10
Publisher Summit	Jan. 29
D.C. Summit	Nov. 14

OUR MISSION

On September 24, alongside our partners, the Future of News Initiative published the following mission statement of the Future of News across half a dozen publications, with a goal of raising awareness and encouraging behavior change from our partners in the advertising world.

Read our Mission Statement

Research

In partnership with HarrisX, we created a proprietary News Advertising Study to conduct objective, quantitative research into the perception and health of news advertising.

In May 2024, Future of News launched a first-of-its-kind report exploring the impact of ad adjacency to a range of news topics on key brand reputation metrics. The study revealed ads adjacent to “not brand safe” stories performed on par with ads next to “brand safe” content, challenging the brand safety concerns driving advertisers’ divestiture from news.

In September 2024, the UK study will be released at the Future of News London Summit, exploring similar themes in this unique market.

DOWNLOAD US STUDY CROSSTABS

EXPLORE OUR METHODOLOGY

NEWS IN THE POST-ELECTION LANDSCAPE

The next event in our Future of News series is a post-election summit in Washington, D.C. Alongside new data, the summit will feature a slate of top tier journalists in conversation with news leaders and brands.

Guest speakers to be announced. 

SEE FULL AGENDA AND REGISTER