What do the recent redundancies in the Australian media landscape mean for organisations seeking media coverage?
In case you missed it, the Australian commercial media landscape has taken a significant hit this quarter, with redundancies announced across Nine Entertainment Co (including Pedestrian Group), Seven West Media and News Corp Australia.)
Seeing our LinkedIn feeds flooded with news of job losses or being #opentowork points to the devastation across the media industry. The reality of journalism in 2024 is usually underresourced outlets, underpaid writers, and a degree of job insecurity—only those who are truly passionate remain.
While the articles linked above will provide the technical reasons behind the job losses — Meta deciding not to fund traditional media outlets, in addition to declining revenues, and reduced advertising — it can be difficult to know what it actually means for organisations to achieve mainstream media coverage.
We’ve compiled our tips below.
What to know: Reduced resourcing capabilities in-house will continue.
What to do:
- Ensure your communications with journalists and outlets are concise and straightforward — don’t bury the lead!
- Be story-ready, including access to imagery, case studies, organisational spokespeople, and statistics, removing the need for the journalist to follow up.
- Realise journalists are limited in opportunities which require leaving their desk to attend events or undertake on-site reporting. Support them by gathering quotes and sharing images so you can still achieve coverage.
What to know: Digital media storytelling has seen shifting resources
What to do:
- Ensure that your pitch is well-suited to digital and social platforms. High-quality photos, short videos, and caption-length explainers are essential.
- Utilise your organisation’s owned digital platforms to share stories with alternative angles, so the content does not compete with media outreach but can help raise your profile amongst journalists (such as blogs, articles, social media, and webinars)
What to know: Pedestrian Group’s redundancies has led to a reduction in niche outlets (eg. Vice, Refinery29, Gizmodo, Lifehacker, and Kotaku).
What to do:
- Consider how your niche product or service can be related to mainstream media, utilising existing narratives or news stories to showcase your stories.
- Engage with the local media outlets around your office or close to your case studies — they are often keen to tell left-of-centre stories with regional significance. Many local outlets are also part of state or national networks (Australian Community Media, ABC Online, etc.), providing ample syndication opportunities.
Do you need help refining your key messages, discerning what is ‘newsworthy’, and achieving media coverage that converts?
Mention this article for a free consultation with Fifty Acres’ CEO, Jo Scard, one of Australia’s leading communications and engagement advisors for purpose-driven organisations.
Get in touch with Fifty Acres via jo@fityacres.com.