Journalism’s Identity Crisis Masquerading as Strategy
US predictions for 2026 are stuck in an existential loop. The UK predictions are a tactical playbook. Here is what happens when you stop debating and start executing.
When I look at journalism predictions lists, most of them sound like identity crises masquerading as strategic thought.
I love the Journalism.co.uk 2026 predictions list for its juxtaposition with American ones. The Nieman Lab predictions we produce here in the US are existential. They often wrestle with who we are and what journalism means to democracy.
The UK list is something else. It reads like a strategic playbook.
It is helpful to see these UK predictions, because the value of most prediction lists is tactical rather than prophetic. You learn not what will happen, but what people are choosing to do.
Most of us have been doing “existential crisis” every January since the pandemic. We are getting very little forward progress. So, looking at the UK list, which is sharp, is instructive.
Here is what I found. UK predictions offer tactical advice, where US predictions are existential.
The UK Has Customer Clarity
US predictions still circle a lot of core questions about journalism’s future. The UK version has moved past the debate. It has chosen a customer and is now figuring out how to serve them.
The Economist is the example Kevin Young picks, and the goal is to “overserve the fans.” Launch exclusive shows and newsletters for the 1.3 million subscribers you already have. Stop trying to serve everyone.
The Financial Times takes a similar approach. Sarah Ebner frames trust as a currency earned through “meaningful engagement.” Meaningful engagement isn’t an abstraction. It is replying to comments. It is showing you are listening. The customer is the person willing to do that.
Mattia Peretti suggests that we “create less and curate more” so that we are enabling those conversations to happen. Nina Brorson talks about how to embed those user needs directly into editorial production.
These are tactical choices. This is not vague statements about serving democracy. This is a very clear choice about who you are optimizing for and what they actually value.
They Have Made Peace with Fragmentation
In the US, lots of us are still caught up in whether or not we should resist platform power. The UK has made peace with fragmentation and moved on to tactical responses.
Ed Walker actually predicts a “messy” 2026. He even uses the word. Instead of moaning about it, he invests in owned platforms and CMS tools outside the control of tech giants. You stop fearing the chaos of the platforms but build your house on your own land.
Kassy Cho has a similar analysis. Smaller, more youth-led newsrooms are succeeding because they know how to play inside the platform constraints. Erika Marzano has a great metaphor for this. You do not fight the wall. You climb it.
Sofia Delgado is blunt. “Newsrooms have to choose your own adventure.” Here is a warning. If you run a race without direction, you will waste money trying to copy someone else’s playbook.
The strategic move is not resisting fragmentation. It is picking a lane based on where your audience already lives.
They Are Building for Speed
US prediction lists often talk about AI and creators as forces acting on us. UK predictions are talking about how we organize the work inside newsrooms to be able to respond.
Khalil Cassimally uses the term “flash teams.” These are temporary squads that form to tackle a specific problem. Gather up the expertise you need to solve the problem and then disband. You do not need a permanent cross-functional committee to move fast.
Rozina Breen calls for “radical collaborations” between newsrooms. Erika Marzano imagines a creator-journalist hybrid role that blends platform fluency with editorial judgment.
There is even a reframing of fear. François Nel suggests that we think about fear as a “strategic variable” that, if managed well, enables you to move fast and think clearly.
These are not ideas about innovation for its own sake. These are actual blueprints for building organizational capacity to execute.
They Are Honest About What Matters
I think the most refreshing thing about this list is just how pragmatic it is.
Corinne Podger reminds us that our scarcest resource is time. The advice is not work harder. The advice is audit your calendars and kill meetings so strategic work has space to exist.
Niketa Patel says newsrooms need to decentre themselves and actually serve their communities. This is not philosophy. This is a strategy.
Then there is Jim Waterson who runs London Centric. He has 4,000 paying subscribers covering reporting and legal expenses. He reminds us that financial independence enables editorial independence. There is no romance. No scaling up. No pretending sustainability is a second phase. There is just a model that works.
What US Newsrooms Should Learn
The UK list is not further ahead in a crisis. It is further ahead in accepting reality.
Clarity comes from deciding who you are for. The Economist overserves subscribers. The FT builds trust with readers who engage. Every downstream decision flows from that.
You cannot win everywhere. Delgado’s warning is stark. The newsrooms that will fail are those that are waiting for a silver bullet. The ones that succeed are the ones that will pick specific lanes and move even if those lanes feel constraining at first.
Structure matters as much as strategy. You can have a great plan, but fail to execute it if your structure cannot keep pace. Without flash teams or creative workflows, speed is an illusion.
It comes down to mindset. The US is still stuck in an identity debate. The UK is executing.
There is no real comparison between the two lists. Both markets are facing the same pressures. Platforms. Creators. AI. Trust. The UK has just moved from a question of “what should we do?” to a statement of “here is what we are doing.”
That is the lesson. Stop debating. Pick your customer. Organize for speed. Invest in direct relationships. Strategic clarity does not come from better predictions. It comes from deciding and acting.
What's the tactical choice you're making right now—not the one you're still debating? Drop it in the comments or reply via email. I'm curious what clarity actually looks like in practice.
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