2026年新闻行业报告

STATEOF

JOURNALISM

2026

TABLEOFCONTENTS

01

Executivesummary

02

Howjournalistswork

15

AIandsocialmedia

25

Mediarelations

38

Demographics

47

Methodology

Executivesummary

•Disinformationandlackoffundingtieastopthreatsat32%,whileconcernaboutuncheckedAIrisesto26%,up8points.

•AIadoptionreaches82%,withChatGPTuseclimbingto47%andGeminijumpingto22%.

•Relianceonsocialmediaforreportingfallsto21%,down12pointssince2024,though45%stillrelyonitforpromotion.

•86%sayPRpitchesinspireatleastsomestories,yet88%deletepitchesthatmisstheirbeat.

•LinkedInisthemosttrustedplatformat58%,whileTikTokdistrustrisesto61%andBlueskymomentumdrops14points.

1

Howjournalistswork

HOWJOURNALISTSWORK

AIconcernssurgeto26%,asfundinganddisinformationleadat32%

Disinformationandlackoffundingremain

thetopconcerns,eachcitedby32%of

journalists.ButthebiggestshiftthisyearisAI.

ConcernaboutuncheckedAIusejumped

from18%in2025to26%,an8percentage-pointincrease,puttingitlevelwithpublic

trustat26%.

Meanwhile,concernaboutdisinformationdippedfrom36%to32%,suggestingthethreatlandscapeiswideningratherthanconsolidatingaroundasingleissue.

Whatissuesfacingjournalistsaremostconcerningtoyou?

(chooseyourtopthree)

Other

4%

Journalistsafety

6%

Disinformationand

misinformation

32%

Unregulatedor

uncheckeduseofAI

injournalism

26%

Government

interferencein

thepress

25%

Internationalthreats...3

2%

Legalintimidation

orabuseofthe

legalsystem

12%

Politicization

andpolarization

ofjournalism

23%

Information

overloadand

audience

fragmentation

13%

Publictrustinjournalism

26%

Declineoflocalnews

20%

Mediaandnewsliteracy

20%

Lackoffunding

32%

Reputationalrisk...1

6%

Lackofinterest...2

6%

Understaffingandtime

pressure

20%

Quality

controland

fact-checking

capacity

7%

Editorial

independence

10%

1.Reputationalriskfromcommercialpressures

2.Lackofinterestinjournalismamongstudentsandearly-careerworkers3.Internationalthreatstopressfreedom

3

HOWJOURNALISTSWORK

Amajoritysay

misinformationismaking

reportingharder

Morethanhalfofjournalistssay

misinformationhascomplicatedtheir

workoverthepastyear.14%sayit

hasmadereportingagreatdealmoredifficult,whileanother42%sayitmakesreportingsomewhatmoredifficult.

Incontrast,30%saynotmuchandjust9%saynotatall.

Howmuchhasmisinformationordisinformationmadeyour

reportingmoredifficultinthepastyear?

100%

80%

60%

42%

40%

30%

14%

20%

5%

9%

0%

4

AgreatdealSomewhatNotmuchNotatallNotapplicable

HOWJOURNALISTSWORK

Mostjournalists

saytheirworkfeelsmeaningful,but

nearlyhalfsayit’sexhausting

Journalistsarefarmorelikelytodescribetheirworkasmeaningfulthananythingelse,with65%selectingthatoption.

Still,theemotionalpictureismixed.47%saythejobfeelsexhaustingand38%

sayitfeelsprecarious,while43%finditrewardingand32%sayitfeelsexciting.

Whichofthefollowingbestdescribesyourcurrentfeelings

aboutyourworkinjournalism?(Selectallthatapply)

meaningful65%exhausting47%rewarding43%

Itfeels...precarious38%

routineorrepetitive25%

isolating18%

exciting32%

5

Other5%

HOWJOURNALISTSWORK

56%ofjournalistsfeelsupportedintheirrole

Aslimmajorityofjournalists

feelbackedbythetoolsand

guidancetheyneed.24%say

theyareverywell-supportedand32%saysomewhatsupported,totaling56%onthepositiveside.

Another23%feelneutral,while21%reportfeelingunsupportedtosomedegree.

Howwell-supporteddoyoufeelinyourcurrentroleinterms

oftools,training,oreditorialguidance?

100%

80%

60%

40%

20%

0%

32%

24%

23%

14%

7%

Neutral

Somewhatsupported

Somewhatunsupported

Very

well-supported

Very

6

unsupported

What’sonethingleadershipatyourorganizationcandotomakeyoufeelbettersupported?

Providepositivefeedback

withoutneedingtoseekitout,

ratherthanpurelyconveying

whenthere’saproblem.

Hiremorepeople

insteadofdemandingwe

domorewithless.

BettertrainingonuseofAIinjournalism.

Raisemypayforthefirsttime

in10yearsandsecondtimein

thelast28years.

Provideacleargrowth/

survivalstrategyforouroutlet

Spendmoretimegoing

throughstoryideasand

guidance,specificallywith

topicsIhaven’tcoveredbefore.

HOWJOURNALISTSWORK

Nearlyone-

thirdsaysafety

concernshave

affectedtheirwork

Safetyisshapinghowmanyjournalistsoperate.7%saysafetyconcernshavesignificantlyaffectedhowtheydotheirjob,andanother25%saysomewhat.

Thatmeans32%haveadjustedtheirworkinsomewayduetosafetyrisks.

Meanwhile,65%saysafetyhasnotaffectedtheirwork,with3%unsure.

Inthepastyear,havesafetyconcernsaffectedhow

youdoyourjobasajournalist?

Notsure

3%

Yes,somewhat

25%

No

8

65%

HOWJOURNALISTSWORK

Mostsaytheyusuallyhaveenoughtime,but15%rarelyorneverdo

Amajorityofjournalistsfeeltheycan

meettheirstandardsmostofthetime.18%saytheyalwayshaveenoughtime,and39%sayoften.

Still,timepressurepersistsformany,with14%sayingrarelyand1%sayingnever.Another27%fallinthemiddle.

Doyoufeelyouhaveenoughtimetocompleteyour

journalisticworktoyourstandards?

18%

27%

39%

Often

Always

Sometimes

1%

14%

Never

9

Rarely

HOWJOURNALISTSWORK

Justoverhalffeelconfidentabouttheirlong-termprospects

18%ofjournalistssaytheyareveryconfidentand35%somewhat

confident,totaling53%ontheoptimisticside.

Atthesametime,21%saytheyaresomewhatunconfidentand9%veryunconfident,while17%feelneutral.

Howconfidentareyouinyourlong-termcareer

prospectsinjournalism?

Neutral

17%

Somewhatconfident

35%

Somewhatunconfident

21%

Veent

Veryunconfident

10

9%

HOWJOURNALISTSWORK

Short-termjob

securityoutpaceslong-termcareerconfidence

While66%ofjournalistssaytheirjobfeelsveryorsomewhatsecureover

thenextyear,only53%feelconfidentabouttheirlong-termcareerprospects.

16%saytheyfeelsomewhatorveryinsecureabouttheircurrentjob.

11

Howsecuredoesyourcurrentjobfeeloverthenext12months?

8%

8%

17%

34%

32%

Veryinsecure

Somewhatinsecure

Uncertain

Somewhatsecure

Verysecure

HOWJOURNALISTSWORK

Roleexpansionholdssteady

at62%forthesecondyear

62%ofjournalistssaytheir

responsibilitieshaveexpanded.

Just33%reportnochange,and

5%saytheirdutieshavenarrowed.

Haveyourjobresponsibilitiesexpandedinthepastyear

beyondyourcorerole?

They’venarrowed5%

No,they’veremainedthesame33%

Yes,somewhat33%

12

Yes,significantly29%

HOWJOURNALISTSWORK

Nearlyhalfoffull-timejournalistsearnbetween

$40kand$70k

45%ofjournalistsearnbetween

$40,000and$70,000peryear,makingitthemostcommonsalaryband.

Another30%fallbetween$70,000and$100,000,while9%earnlessthan$40,000.

Atthehigherend,17%makemorethan$100,000,includingjust1%earningover$250,000.

Howmuchdoyouearnperyearfromyourfull-timejob?

<$40k

$40k–70k

$70k–100k

$100k–150k

$150k–250k

>$250k

9%

45%

30%

12%

4%

1%

13

0%20%40%60%80%1%100%

HOWJOURNALISTSWORK

Organizational

confidenceissteady,butnearlyonein

threehaveconcerns

Aslimmajorityofjournalistsexpress

confidenceintheirorganization’slong-termstability.21%saytheyarevery

confidentand35%somewhatconfident,totaling56%onthepositiveside.

Atthesametime,18%aresomewhat

concernedand11%veryconcerned,

meaning29%carrymeaningfuldoubts.

Another15%feelneutral,reflectingaworkforcethatismoreconfidentthanconcerned,butfarfromcertain.

Howconfidentareyouinthelong-termstabilityofthe

organizationyouworkfor?

Neutral

15%

Somewhatconfident

35%

Somewhatconcerned

18%

Veent

Veryconcerned

14

11%

AIandsocialmedia

AIANDSOCIALMEDIA

AIadoption

climbsto82%,withChatGPTandGemini

gainingground

AIusagecontinuestogrow.Just18%ofjournalistssaytheyusenoneofthelistedtools,downfrom23%lastyear,meaningadoptionhasrisenfrom77%to82%.

ChatGPTleadsat47%,upfrom42%,whileGeminijumpsfrom13%to22%andClaudedoublesfrom6%to12%.

Transcriptiontoolsholdsteadyat40%.

WhichofthefollowingAItoolsorplatformshaveyouusedinyourjournalisticworkinthepast12months?(Selectallthatapply)

40%

32%

22%

18%

13%

12%

9%

8%

4%

3%

2%2%

47%

ChatGPT

AItranscriptiontools(e.g.Otter.ai)

Grammarly

Gemini

Noneoftheseoptions

AItoolsbuiltformynewsroom

Claude

PerplexityAI

Other

AdobeFireflyorPhotoshopAIfeatures

AIspeech-to-texttools(e.g.Whisper)

AIimagegenerators(e.g.DALL·E)

AIcodingassistants(e.g.GitHubCopilot)

42%

40%

35%

23%

13%

11%

8%

6%6%

5%

4%

3%

2%

16

20252026

VeryImportant

21%

Important

20%

ModeratelyImportant

24%

toproducingyourwork?

SlightlyImportant

17%

NotImportant

17%

17

AIANDSOCIALMEDIA

Relianceonsocialmediaforreportinghasfallen12pointsintwoyears

Just21%ofjournalistsnowsaysocial

mediaisveryimportanttoproducing

theirwork,downfrom33%in2024,a12percentage-pointdeclineovertwoyears.

Another20%sayitisimportantand24%moderatelyimportant,meaning65%

stillseeatleastsomevalue.Butstrong

reliancehasclearlysoftened,with34%nowsayingsocialmediaisonlyslightlyornotimportanttotheirreportingprocess.

VeryImportant

45%

Howimportant

issocialmedia

forpromoting

yourwork?

Important

27%

ModeratelyImportant

17%

SlightlyImportant

9%

NotImportant

3%

18

AIANDSOCIALMEDIA

45%saysocialmediaisveryimportantforpromotion,holdingsteadyyearoveryear

Socialmediaremainsfarmorecriticalforpromotionthanforreporting.45%ofjournalistssayitisveryimportantforpromotingtheirwork,unchangedfromlastyear.Combined,72%rateitveryorimportantthisyear.

Thatalignswith2024,when70%saidsocialmediawasimportantorvery

importantforpromotion.

AIANDSOCIALMEDIA

Facebookisthe

mostvaluable

socialplatformforjournalistsasXfalls

28%ofjournalistssayFacebookisthemostvaluablesocialplatformfortheirwork,keepingitinthetopspotforthesecondyear.

LinkedInfollowsat20%,whileXdropsto17%,downfrom36%in2024and21%lastyear.Instagramcomesinat15%,andnoother

platformexceeds5%.

Overall,whichsocialmediaismostvaluabletoyouasajournalist?

Facebook

Linkedin

X(formerlyTwitter)

Instagram

Bluesky

Youtube

Reddit

Idon'tuseanyofthese

Tiktok

WhatsApp/Telegram/Signal

28%

20%

17%

15%

5%4%4%l2%2% I1%

19

0%20%40%60%80%100%

AIANDSOCIALMEDIA

JournalistsshifttimetowardLinkedIn

andInstagramasBluesky’sgrowthslowssharply

LinkedIncontinuestogainattention,with47%ofjournalistsspendingmoretimethere,followedbyInstagramat

40%andYouTubeat32%,alllargelysteadyyearoveryear.

ThebiggestmovementisonBluesky,

wherethesharespendingmoretime

fellfrom38%to24%,a14percentage-pointdrop,andthosespendingless

timerosefrom4%to12%.

Overthelastyear,didyouspendmoreorlesstimeonthefollowingsocialnetworkscomparedtothepreviousyear?

LinkedInInstagramYouTube

Reddit

Facebook

Bluesky

WhatsApp/Telegram/Signal

X(formerlyTwitter)

TikTok

Threads

Discord

Mastodon

11%47%

15%40%

8%32%

7%29%

23%24%

12%24%

5%22%

22%34%

10%21%

10%12%6%8%

1%5%

0%20%40%60%80%100%

MoreLess20

AIANDSOCIALMEDIA

LinkedInremainsmosttrusted,whiledistrustinTikTok

jumps10points

LinkedIncontinuestostandapartfromitspeerswith58%ofjournalistssayingtheytrusttheplatformtotreatjournalisticcontentfairly.

ThebiggestshiftthisyearisTikTok.Thesharewhoviewitasuntrustworthyrosefrom51%to61%,a10percentage-pointincrease,drivenbyasharpdropinneutralresponsesfrom35%to25%.Trust

perceptionsarelargelystableelsewhere,butTikTokismovingdecisivelyinthe

wrongdirection.

Howmuchdoyoutrusteachofthefollowingplatformsto

treatjournalisticcontentfairly?

6%5%

31%

40%18%

19%3%

30%

12%2%

32%

13%3%

50%

LinkedIn

9%10%

40%

33%9%

Threads/Bluesky/Mastadon

8%14%

40%

30%7%

YouTube

8%13%

43%

29%6%

Reddit

16%

27%

36%

Instagram

31%

25%

TikTok

29%

24%

Facebook

19%

12%

12%6%

X(formerlyTwitter)

21

VeryuntrustworthySomewhatuntrustworthyNeutralSomewhattrustworthyVerytrustworthy

AIANDSOCIALMEDIA

Nearly59%ofjournalistssaysafetyconcernsshapehowtheyusesocialmedia

Personalsafetyandharassmentare

influencinghowjournalistsshowuponline.21%saytheseconcernshavesignificantlyaffectedhowtheyuse

socialmediaprofessionally,and38%saysomewhat.Thattotals59%whoreportatleastsomeimpact.

Meanwhile,27%saynotreallyand15%saynotatall.

Haveconcernsaboutpersonalsafety,harassment,orreputationmanagementaffectedhowyouusesocialmediaprofessionally?

21%

27%

15%

38%

Yes,somewhat

No,notreally

Notatall

22

Yes,significantly

AIANDSOCIALMEDIA

Morethan

one-thirdpublishindependently

37%ofjournalistssaytheypublishnews,commentaryorothercontentundertheirownnameorbrandoutsideatraditionalmediaorganization.Thisfigureisup

slightlycomparedtolastyear.

Doyouindependentlypublishnews,commentary,or

othercontentunderyourownnameorbrand,outside

ofatraditionalmediaorganization?

Yes

37%

No

23

63%

Mediarelations

MEDIARELATIONS

Only3%of

journalistshavetheirstories

fullyassigned

55%ofjournalistssaydecidingwhatstoriestoworkonisamixofpitchingandassignments,while40%saytheypitchandchoosetheirownstories

outright.Just3%saytheireditorormanagerfullyassignstheirwork.

Whoprimarilydecideswhatstoriesyouworkon?

Ipitchandchoosemyownstories

It’samixofboth

55%

40%

Myger3%

25

Other2%

MEDIARELATIONS

AmajoritysayPRrelationshipsareimportanttotheirsuccess

PRrelationshipsmattertomost

journalists.30%sayPRprosareveryimportanttobeingsuccessfulattheirjoband23%sayimportant,totaling53%onthehigh-importanceside.

Another20%ratethemmoderatelyimportant,while27%sayslightlyornotimportant.

Howimportantareyourrelationshipswithpublicrelations

professionalstobeingsuccessfulatyourjob?

VeryImportant

30%

Important

23%

NotImportant

12%

Moderately

SlightlyImportant

15%

Important

26

20%

MEDIARELATIONS

MorethanhalfofjournalistsseldomorneverrespondtoPRpitches

54%ofjournalistssaytheyseldomorneverrespondtoPRpitches.

Another25%respondabouthalfthetime,whilejust15%sayusuallyand6%always.

HowoftendoyoutorespondtoPRproswhentheypitchyoustories?

Always6%

Usually15%

Abouthalfthetime25%

Seldom47%

Never7%

Reply

Forward

27

MEDIARELATIONS

Dailypitchvolumeshiftsupward,withmorejournalists

receiving6to10perday

Inboxpressureremainshighandis

inchingupward.29%ofjournalistsnowreceive6–10PRpitchesonanormal

workday,upfrom25%lastyear.

Thesharereceivingjust1–5dipsfrom46%to43%,while14%reportgettingmorethan20perday,slightlyupfrom13%.Fewerjournalistsfallinthe11–20rangeat14%,downfrom17%.

HowmanyPRpitchesdidyoureceiveduringyourlastnormalworkday?

1–56–1011–20

e21+

43%

46%

29%

25%

14%

17%

14%

13%

28

20252026

MEDIARELATIONS

Nearlyhalf

ofjournalists

sayrelevant

pitchesarerare

Relevanceremainsthecorechallengein

mediarelations.43%ofjournalistssaytheyseldomreceivepitchesthatmatchwhat

theycover,and4%saynever.Only3%saypitchesarealwaysrelevantand17%say

usually.One-thirdsayabouthalfthetime.

HowoftendoyoureceivePRpitchesrelevanttowhatyoucover?

Always

Usually

Abouthalfthetime

Seldom

Never

3%

17%

33%

43%

4%

29

0%20%40%60%80%100%

MEDIARELATIONS

86%ofjournalistssayatleastsomestoriesstartwithaPRpitch

PRpitchesrarelydominatecoverage,buttheyarepartofthemix.51%ofjournalistssay1%-10%oftheirstoriesoriginatefromapitch,and34%saymorethan10%do.

Only14%saynoneoftheirworkstartsthatway.Pitchesmaynotdrivemost

stories,buttheyconsistentlycontributetothenewscycle.

AboutwhatpercentageofyourpublishedstoriesstartedwithaPRpitch?

100%

80%

60%

51%

40%

17%

14%

20%

12%

5%

0%

30

0%1-10%11-25%16-50%Morethan50%

MEDIARELATIONS

Relevanceandaccessmattermostinapitch

Journalistsareclearaboutwhatmakesapitchworthwhile.70%sayitshoulddemonstrateclearrelevancetotheir

beat,makingalignmentthetoppriority.Accessalsomatters,with58%wantinginterviewaccesstorelevantsources.

Beyondthat,40%valueoriginaldataorresearchand37%wanthigh-resolutionimages.Tacticslikepre-writtenquotesat14%andsocialmediacopyat3%rankfarlower.

WhichofthefollowingshouldaPRproideallyoffer

alongwiththeirstorypitch?

Clearrelevancetomybeat

Interviewaccesstorelevantsources

Originaldataorresearch

High-resolutionimages

Exclusiveorembargoedcontent

Pre-writtenquotes

Other

Noneoftheabove

Socialmediacopy

70%58%

40%

37%

33%14%

6%3%3%

31

0%20%40%60%80%100%

MEDIARELATIONS

88%of

journalistsdeletepitchesthatmisstheirbeat

88%ofjournalistssaytheyimmediatelydisregardpitchesthatdonotmatchtheircoveragearea.71%rejectthosethatfeeloverlypromotional,and50%areputoffbymassemails.

Repeatedfollow-upswithoutresponseat46%andpitchesthataretoolongorunclearat40%alsodrivedeletions.

WhatcausesyoutoimmediatelydisregardordeleteaPRpitch?

(Selectallthatapply)

Itlookslikeamassemail

50%

It’soverlypromotionaloradvertorial

71%

It’sirrelevant

tomy

coverage

88%

It’saddressedtothewrongnameoroutlet

35%

It’stoolongorunclear

40%

Itlacksanysourceaccess

26%

It’ssent

repeatedly

without

response

46%

Other

3%

32

MEDIARELATIONS

Community

impactdefinestruerelevanceforpitches

Relevancegoesbeyondmatchinga

beat.78%ofjournalistssayapitchfeelsgenuinelyrelevantwhenitdirectlyaffectsthecommunitytheiraudiencebelongsto.45%lookforclearlocalorcultural

context,and28%valueincludingvoicesfromtheimpactedcommunity.

Another28%sayavoidinggenericor

stereotypicalframingmatters,while20%prioritizereflectinglivedexperiences.

Whatmakesapitchgenuinelyrelevanttoyour

audience,notjustyourbeat?

Itdirectlyaffectsthecommunitymyaudiencebelongsto

Ithasclearlocalorculturalcontext

Itincludesvoicesfromthecommunityimpacted

Itavoidsgenericorstereotypicalframing

78%

45%

28%

28%

Itreflectsmlived

20%

Other

3%

33

0%20%40%60%80%100%

MEDIARELATIONS

Only16%of

journalistssaypitchesusuallyreflecttheir

community

Just3%ofjournalistssayPRoutreachalwaysreflectsthecommunitytheiroutletserves,and13%sayusually.

Thelargestshare,44%,saythis

happensseldom,while7%saynever.

Another34%sayabouthalfthetime.

HowoftendoPRpitchesdemonstrateawarenessofthe

communityyouroutletserves?

Always

Usually

Abouthalfthetime

Seldom

Never

3%

13%

34%

44%

7%

34

0%20%40%60%80%100%

SuMTWThFS

THEPERFECTPITCH

Accordingtoeightyearsofjournalistsurveys

62%ofjournalistsprefertobepitchedvia1:1email

50%don’tcarewhichdaytheyarepitched,butofthosethatdo,18%prefertobepitchedonaMonday

78%wanttoreceivepitchesbeforenoon

69%preferpitchesthatareunder200words

50%sayonefollowupisideal,and51%sayitshouldcomewithin3-7dayslater

What’sonethingyouwishPRprosknew?

“Keepitshort,keepitsimple.”

“IcantellifyouuseAI.”

“Don’tpitchwidely;pitchselectively,andthenwidenasneeded.”

“Knowthejournalistanditsreadership.”

“Personalrelationshipsmatter.”

“IthinkmostPRprosaredoing

theirjobsadequately.”

Demographics

Inwhatcountrydoyouwork?

NorthAmerica

81%

Europe

4%

Asia

4%

UK

4%

Africa

6%

Oceania

1%

SouthAmerica

1%

Whattypesofjournalismworkareyoucurrentlydoing?

100%

80%

58%

60%

18%

19%

40%

20%

0%

12%

8%

4%3%

Full-timestaffatamediaorganization

Freelance journalism(part-timeoroccasional)

Freelancejournalism (full-time)

Independentor

self-published

journalism

Contractor

temporary

journalismwork

Part-timestaffatamediaorganization

Other

Howlonghaveyoubeenajournalist?

0%

Under1year

3%16%20%27%33%

1–2years

3–5years6–10years10–20years21+years

Howoldareyou?

0%

18–20

18%

21–29

26%

30–39

20%

40–49

19%

50–59

17%

60+

journalistjournalist

Whatbestdescribesyourrole?

10