2025 Media Trends: What to Expect in a Year of Transformation

By the SBS Comms Media Strategy Team | Adapted by 829 Studios

As we wrap our heads around the seismic shifts of 2024 — from the presidential election to the AI boom and tectonic shifts in tech media — one thing is clear: the pace of change isn’t slowing down. We’ve been deep in conversation with journalists, clients, and peers to surface the trends shaping the year ahead.

Here are the top media predictions for 2025, and what they mean for brands trying to stay ahead.

A Return to Positivity in Business Coverage

After nearly a decade of criticism, gotcha journalism, and scandal-driven storytelling, the public appetite is changing. Following a high-drama 2024 election, readers are tuning out the negativity — and media outlets are adjusting in kind.

We expect a shift to future-focused profiles, innovation stories, and a more optimistic lens on founders and technologies shaping tomorrow. That doesn’t mean scrutiny is going away, but it does mean that tone matters. Positivity is a competitive advantage in 2025.

What to do:

Focus on positioning your brand with a forward-thinking vision. Emphasize innovation, impact, and narrative storytelling that energizes instead of defends.

Media Companies Will Get Creative With Revenue Models

With advertising disrupted by AI and subscriptions plateauing, media companies will be forced to rethink how they make money. We’re likely to see bolder moves, like publications experimenting with investment models (e.g., reporters covering startups they back) or doubling down on affiliate revenue and platform partnerships.

What to do:

Brands should be ready to support underwritten content and engage with media in new formats. Be open to integrated sponsorships, bundles, and performance-based content initiatives.

Local Journalism Will Find Its Footing

The “death of local news” narrative may be premature. In 2025, you should expect a resurgence of community-first journalism, driven by nonprofit and worker-owned models. As tech’s impact becomes more neighborhood-based, local trust will matter more than national reach.

What to do:

Map your PR strategy to local ecosystems. Build relationships with city-level reporters, newsletters, and community outlets where innovation is becoming real life.

Post-Election Media Will Reevaluate Itself

With Republicans controlling the White House and Congress, media institutions are undergoing another round of self-examination. This means:

• More coverage of alternative and conservative media.
• Closer scrutiny of Big Tech’s ties to politics.
• A renewed interest in how Silicon Valley is shaping power.

What to do:

Know who’s influencing your audience. Diversify your media mix and be ready to answer broader questions about your leadership’s political and cultural alignment.

Hosts and Audiences Will Be the New Gatekeepers

The biggest media shift of the past two years? Power is migrating from publications to individual creators and their communities. TikTok, Substack, YouTube, and long-form podcasts are driving more meaningful coverage than many traditional outlets.

What to do:

Think audience-first. Treat podcast and creator interviews as “earned media” opportunities with a massive upside, and respect their formats and autonomy.

Paywalls Will Change Reader Behavior

Paywalls aren’t going anywhere, but they are making news consumption more strategic. People are choosing bundles (Apple News+), summaries, and aggregators to avoid fragmented fees. This means more conscious engagement, selective reading, and pressure on publications to earn their place in the bundle economy.

What to do:

Make your content easy to discover and share across platforms. Prioritize brand storytelling in spaces that aren’t gated, and build thought leadership on open, accessible platforms.

AI-Powered Media Will Face Accountability

Media companies are at a crossroads with AI. Some are selling access to LLMs. Others are suing them. But the real question is, Can journalism remain trustworthy, resist misinformation, and still be financially viable in the AI era?

What to do:

Own your narrative. Ensure your press releases, on-site content, and leadership profiles are AI-friendly, credible, and structured to appear in next-gen results, including AI Overviews and summaries.

Final Thought

For brands and marketers, the challenge in 2025 is to stay relevant, credible, and in sync with shifting audiences and power structures. That requires more than pitching stories. It requires building bridges between content and context, platforms and people, storytelling and science.

Let’s get to work.