What makes the news in 2026?
Lisa-Marie Richan (L-M)
Having something to announce is not the same as having a story. It is a distinction that can occasionally cause some disappointment.
Convergence co-founder Erin Jamieson recently moderated PRINZ’s What Makes the News? event in Auckland. The panel brought together four people who decide every day what New Zealanders will read, watch and hear:
- Murray Kirkness, Chief Content Officer (Publishing), NZME
- Nadia Tolich, Chief News and Content Officer, TVNZ
- Keith Lynch, Editor-in-Chief, Stuff Digital
- Mark Stevens, Chief News Officer, RNZ
It was a candid look inside busy newsrooms, what editors want, what makes them switch off, and what communications people can do to give a good story a fighting chance.
Start with a person
The strongest message was also the simplest – stories are about people.
An announcement may matter enormously inside an organisation and still leave everyone else cold. The job is to show who is affected, why it matters and what will be different. A real person, with something genuine to say, can make an abstract policy, technical development or corporate announcement understandable.
That does not mean finding a ‘case study’ at the last minute and handing them a script. It means identifying people early, making sure they are comfortable and preparing them to speak in their own words.
A media release on its own is rarely enough. A credible and well-prepared spokesperson, available when the journalist calls, can be the difference between a story being discussed and a story being published.
The same pitch will not work for a regional newspaper, a business publication, the six o’clock news and a specialist trade outlet. They serve different audiences and make different editorial choices. It’s important to have good relationships with journalists and know who covers what.
Speed matters too. If approvals take half a day and the spokesperson cannot be found, the opportunity may be gone. Preparing the facts, approvals and people in advance is not over-engineering. It is what gives the story a chance.
AI is influencing how news is created, found and distributed, but it has not removed the need for accuracy, judgement, originality and trust. Journalists still want reliable information and authentic voices.
No PR agency can guarantee coverage. But a strong human story, pitched to the right outlet and backed by people who are ready to talk, will always do better than a media release looking for a reason to exist.
