2019 Global Journalism Report Data Shows 16% Worldwide Increase in Number of Content Publishers, Continued Trend Towards Media Fragmentation TOP 100 AUTHOR PLATFORMS LIST RELEASED TOP 50 EDITORIAL TOPICS LIST RELEASED Data Show Worldwide Decrease in Professional Journalists; Shift Towards Independent AuthorsThe State of Journalism The world of journalism has never been as dynamic as it is today. Thanks to the digital media revolution and the emergence of self-publishing platforms it has become easier than ever for individuals to create and distribute editorial content of all forms. This has led to a proliferation of independent, digital-first authors who are either affiliated with a variety of media outlets, or solely publishing from their own personal brands. The result: the lines have blurred between news and entertainment, and the practice of journalistic expression has become democratized. There are obvious benefits to consumers in having access to real-time information from a broad set of perspectives. Digital media has given us an alternative to the bias of publishing monopolies, not the least of which is corporate and political influence. But democracy comes at a cost, and this “democratization” of the media is no exception. We all want more choice. The challenge is when the choices are endless, and when journalist credibility is no longer a simple function of the reputation of the publication to which they contribute. It may be the case that, due to a legacy of high editorial standards and extremely competitive newsrooms, journalists from established media outlets like The New York Times and the Wall Street Journal can be trusted for quality, accurate reporting. However, truthful, informative, and entertaining content is not limited to the media elite, and some may argue that the editorial fringes provide comparable valuable. To fully understand the transformation which the world of journalism is undergoing, Onclusive analyzed 2.1 billion pieces of editorial content between Quarter 1 2018 and Quarter 1 2019. The numbers tell a story of an author ecosystem which is fragmenting across publication tiers, editorial topics, and content formats.2018 GLOBAL MEDIA REPORT | 5 2019 Global Journalism Report | 3 The Numbers This data represent a decline in the number of authors who would generally be considered “professional journalists” based on the association of Tier 1 publications with the largest, most established media outlets, and Tier 3 publications representing the growing list of independent, niche content sites and blogs. Between Q1 2018 and Q1 2019 there was a decrease in the percentage of authors who contributed for Tier 1 publications, and an increase in the percentage of authors who contributed for Tier 3 publications. In Q1 2019, 15% of authors contributed to Tier 1 publications, down from 26% in Q1 2018. Conversely, in Q1 2019, 41% of authors contributed to Tier 3 publications, up from 25% in Q1 2018. Percentage of Authors by Publication Tier 25% 0% 50% 75% 100% Tier 1 Publications Tier 2 Publications Tier 3 PublicationsInside the Newsroom The traditional newsroom is changing in shape and form, and is declining in overall size and scope. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment Survey, newsroom employment in the U.S. dropped 23% between 2008 and 2017, and paid positions as reporters and news correspondents are projected to drop another 10% by 2026. And while all positions may not be full-time and on-staff, certain media companies continue to employ a fair number of journalists overall, including a number of major metro newspaper properties. The Top 100 Author Platforms List ranks digital publications by their volume of contributing authors. 1 Medium 1,689,753 2 Yahoo 28,032 3 Huffington Post 15,450 4 MSN 9,236 5 The Guardian 9,023 6 The New York Times 8,271 7 Washington Times 7,132 8 Washington Post 6,799 9 Sydney Morning Herald 6,788 10 The Daily Mail 6,744 11 USA Today 6,559 12 Business Insider 6,395 13 Chicago Tribune 6,194 14 The Star 6,153 15 Independent 6,032 16 Seattle Times 6,027 17 Miami Herald 6,024 18 US News 5,952 19 New Observer 5,364 20 St. Louis Post 4,953 21 Forbes 4,819 22 The Globe and Mail 4,723 23 Charlotte Observer 4,573 24 The Sacramento Bee 4,257 25 Fox News 4,255 26 CNN 4,113 27 The Wall Street Journal 4,092 28 LA Times 4,012 29 BBC 3,985 30 Time 3,926 31 The Roanoke Times 3,851 32 Stuff 3,822 33 Nature 3,807 34 Telegraph 3,792 35 Vice 3,732 36 Bloomberg 3,607 37 The State 3,589 38 Mirror 3,490 39 CNBC 3,458 40 NPR 3,271 41 Stars and Stripes 3,208 42 The Atlantic 3,149 43 Houston Chronicle 3,125 44 Denver Post 3,063 45 Boston Globe 3,023 46 Reuters 3,019 47 AOL 2,967 48 AZ Central 2,874 49 National Post 2,839 50 Baltimore Sun 2,831 Top 100 Author Platforms List 2019 Global Journalism Report | 451 Milwakee Journal Sentinal 2,779 52 Times Union 2,768 53 Salon 2,729 54 Murcury News 2,679 55 Associated Press 2,655 56 News.au 2,574 57 Orlando Sentinal 2,531 58 The Conversation 2,514 59 Slate 2,482 60 Herald Online 2,457 61 NBC News 2,435 62 Modesto Bee 2,423 63 Missoulian 2,410 64 Star Tribune 2,398 65 New York Daily News 2,388 66 NZ Herald 2,382 67 Pittsburgh Post Gazette 2,347 68 Buzzfeed 2,330 69 ABC News 2,317 70 Lexington Herald 2,305 71 Seeking Alpha 2,298 72 Macon Telegraph 2,237 73 Entrepreneur 2,188 74 The Age 2,184 75 Real Clear Politics 2,177 76 Philadelphia Inquirer 2,144 77 Billings Gazette 2,135 78 The Times UK 2,088 79 The Kansas City Star 2,069 80 MarketWatch 2,052 81 AlterNet 1,999 82 Irish Times 1,981 83 New York Post 1,978 84 The Sun 1,964 85 CBC 1,954 86 San Antonio Express News 1,908 87 Sun Sentinal 1,869 88 Ledger Enquirer 1,857 89 Star Telegram 1,773 90 Boston Herald 1,738 91 Christian Science Monitor 1,659 92 Bleacher Report 1,616 93 Independent.ie 1,588 94 Newsday 1,588 95 The Daily Beast 1,552 96 Brisbane Times 1,551 97 The Hill 1,535 98 All Africa 1,532 99 Daily Record 1,523 100 Columbus Dispatch 1,517 Top 100 Author Platforms List (cont.) 2019 Global Journalism Report | 5Topics of Interest There is a vast spectrum of editorial topics about which todays author is writing. Topics like business, sports, politics and entertainment remain popular themes, but articles about the environment, religion, and information technology are also top subjects. The Top 50 Editorial Topics List ranks each major topic by its volume of contributing authors. Top 50 Editorial Topics List 1 Business / Professional 1,811,426 2 National News 1,784,878 3 Information Technology 1,767,171 4 Consumer Products 1,255,406 5 Lifestyle 1,205,435 6 Fashion 1,160,499 7 Travel / Tourism / Geographic 1,148,880 8 Sports 1,095,771 9 Society 587,594 10 Arts 582,623 11 Local News 573,709 12 Recreation 565,438 13 Politics 564,910 14 Finance / Banking 563,152 15 Health / Medical 558,966 16 Media / Television 548,575 17 Music 536,034 18 Environment 532,536 19 Science 531,226 20 Film 524,137 21 Organisations 515,680 22 Games 514,296 23 Religion 512,332 24 Government 508,210 25 Health Care 56,885 26 Automotive 55,413 27 Industrials 55,073 28 Education 53,042 29 Real Estate 46,186 30 International News 41,984 31 Recipes 34,330 32 Food positive, neutral, negative. The simplest interpretation of this data is that most authors convey a neutral sentiment most the time, about one quarter are generally positive, and the minority of authors are mostly negative in their tone. However, most authors take a different tone based on a given topic, versus always being positive, neutral, or negative. The below charts represent the full percentage distribution of commentary that is positive, neutral, or negative compared to the overall distribution of authors. In other words, what percentage of authors articles are conveying a particular sentiment? For example in this first chart, 20% of most authors articles are positive. Positive Sentiment - A rticle Distribution Percentage of Authors Positive Sentiment2019 Global Journalism Report | 10 Sentiment Also Matters (cont.) Neutral Sentiment - A rticle Distribution In this next chart, 60% of most authors articles are neutral. Negative Sentiment - A rticle Distribution In this last chart, 10% of most authors articles are negative. 10% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 20% 30% 10% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 20% 30% 50% 40% Percentage of Authors Percentage of Authors Neutral Sentiment Negative SentimentKey Takeaways There was a dramatic decrease in the percentage of authors who contributed for Tier 1 publications, and a significant increase in the percentage of authors who contributed for Tier 3 publications The number of professional journalists continues to decline overall and the ratio of PR professionals to journalists is at an all-time high There is an extremely diverse set of editorial subjects being written about, well beyond the most obvious news topics The average number of articles per author is increasing while the average length of those articles is in decline, potentially leading to negative consequences on search engine results Author influence is increasingly important and largely distributed across the author ecosystem, with less than 2% of authors commanding the highest level of influence Author sentiment continues to be a factor in the media relations process, with most authors conveying a neutral sentiment most the time and fewer authors predominantly positive or negative in their overall tone Heading towards 2020, many PR departments are changing the way they think about the target journalist list. More than ever, businesses are evaluating communications performance by connecting content to actual business outcomes, and it is not always easy to predict which journalists can help drive a brands Power of Voice or deliver high PR Attribution. Todays media relations pro requires real-time insights into the quality, engagement, influence, and impact of their placements. This is the only meaningful way to discover which journalists to develop relationships with. But discovery is just the beginning. Once the most important journalists have been identified, breaking through to them can be challenging in todays fragmented media ecosystem. According to the US Census there are now more than 6 PR pros for every journalist. Getting a reporters attention has never been easy. Now, it requires data science. But you dont need a PHD to survive in the new PR worldthat is why we have artificial intelligence. The machines can now take over what has become an otherwise insurmountable tasks of reading, analyzing, and scoring billions of pieces of content every year, so communicators can focus on telling great stories. 2019 Global Journalism Report | 11