The Listening Post

Media trends to watch in 2015

The Listening Post offers its predictions for media and journalism in the year to come.

In this special edition of The Listening Post, we look forward to 2015 to discuss where some of big media and journalism stories are headed this year.

We turn to Russia, which starts the year in the middle of a geopolitical minefield in Ukraine. While independent Russian media outlets that have been critical of President Vladimir Putin’s policies have paid a price, the Kremlin is spending lots of roubles on the expansion of its media. The impact of a new law that restricts foreign media ownership has yet to be felt in the country, but more media will become Russia-owned, as the year goes on.

Gouri Sharma turns to China to look at how Beijing is fine-tuning its global media machine. We discuss President Xi Jinping’s major domestic media reforms, the high-profile anti-graft campaign where big name journalists are being accused of accepting bribes for favourable news coverage, and Beijing’s efforts to cultivate a favourable image of itself among China’s web users.

Eighteen months into the Edward Snowden story, Meenakshi Ravi reports on how journalists are becoming more tech-savvy in order to better report on issues such as national security. The debate and necessity for digital security will be an important subject this year. 

Lastly, we consider how news outlets are increasing thinking digitally. The Listening Post’s Will Yong looks at the shifts in news technology and audience engagement and plugs into some of the key changes to come this year.