Journalism.co.uk is hosting the 30th edition of Newsrewired, the conference for digital media innovators, in London on 24 May.
With just two weeks to go until the event, here is the agenda, which we developed to ensure all participants leave the day not only inspired by the talks and the new connections made on the day, but equipped with the tools to act on that inspiration. Head to newsrewired.com for more information about our speakers, the venue, and to book your ticket.
09:00 - Registration and opening remarks
09:40 - Keynote speech
Our keynote speaker, Zaina Erhaim, is a Syrian journalist and activist who has won multiple international awards for her work on conflict reporting and training citizen reporters. Erhaim directed the documentary series Syria’s Rebellious Women, and has worked with the BBC, Alhayat, Orient TV, the Guardian, the Economist, and Die Zeit.
She kicks off our conference with a message on what it means to do journalism at a time when the media faces threats from repressive regimes, financial pressures, and growing polarisation.
As a journalist working in her home country of Syria when war broke out in 2011, Zaina reported on the conflict and has trained hundreds of citizen journalists, many of them women, making her directly or indirectly responsible for a large proportion of eyewitness journalistic accounts of the Syrian war. She will talk about the role every journalist can and must play in securing the future of a strong and free media, touching on the questions of objectivity, building trust in communities, misinformation, and the line between journalism and activism.
10:00 - Building resilient newsrooms: The skills media managers need in 2022
A panel discussion with John Crowley (consultant), Yasir Khan (Thomson Reuters Foundation), Cristina Nicolotti Squires (Sky News) and Meera Selva (Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism) that will touch on what it takes for newsrooms - and the individuals that work there - to develop resilience.
10:45 - Coffee break
Take a breather, stretch your legs and network with your fellow attendees. Refreshments provided.
11:15 - Navigating the relationship between platforms and publishers (main stage)
David Knowles of The Telegraph, Sumaiya Omar of Seen, and Lexie Kirkconnel-Kawana of IMPRESS mull over the existing "frenemies" publisher-platform relationship, with one eye on regulation as one way to address issues around privacy, advertising, disinformation and revenue.
11:15 - Workshop: Making time and space for fact-checking in your newsroom (breakout room 1)
Alternatively, head to the breakout room for a hand-on practical workshop led by Shayan Sardarizadeh, a BBC Monitoring and BBC World Service journalist reporting on disinformation.
Understanding how to verify content and sources, debunk misinformation, and produce fact-checking content is becoming a crucial part of the reporter’s toolkit, as has become especially apparent during the covid-19 pandemic and conflict in Ukraine. Come along for first-hand tips on making fact-checking part of your reporting workflow.
12:00 - Using the news to tackle polarisation and strengthen democracy
How can we make journalism work better for our communities? In an era where polarisation drives tensions and conflicts at every level of society, we will discuss the role of the media and hear from journalists who have worked on projects aimed at fostering understanding - not division - between different groups.
Vicky Gayle (The Bureau Local), Rob McNeil (The Migration Observatory) and Emily Kasriel (BBC World Service) share the practical frameworks they use for bridge building in their communities.
12:00 First party data: Why it is important and how to use it
We are delighted to host this workshop led by Lisa MacLeod and George Montagu of FT Strategies, who will teach you how to work with first-party data as we approach the 'cookieless future', in a way that supports your newsroom's business goals.
12:45 - Lunch
Stock up for the second half. Lunch is provided at the venue.
12:45 - brown bag AMA with Substack’s Farrah Storr
Or, take your lunch to the breakout room for an "Ask Me Anything" with Farrah Storr, head of writer partnerships, Substack UK. Any burning questions on newsletters? Here is the place to get them answered.
14:15 - Fireside chat: The future of newsletters (main stage)
Sticking with newsletters, we dive into what the future holds for the format with a star-studded line-up of Nimo Omer (Guardian), Aaron Coultate (The Economist), Sarah Ebner (The Financial Times) and Farrah Storr, head of writer partnerships, Substack UK. Find out how to create newsletters your audience cannot start their morning without, and where newsletters belong in your wider digital strategy.
14:15 - Creating content for and with young audiences (breakout room 1)
Oli Dugmore (JOE Media), Warren Nettleford (NEED TO KNOW) and Zing Tsjeng (VICE) are all experts at creating news that resonates with Gen Z and younger millennials. Get all the inside knowledge on how to cover the news for a highly politically engaged audience who grew up on social media and puts a premium on content quality.
15:00 - Revenue models in a changing world: Where is the ceiling for subscribers?
A huge number of news organisations now rely on reader revenue in some way, in the quest for revenue diversification as well as deeper audience relationships and greater independence from platforms. But once you have got rolled out your subscription or membership programmes, how do you plan for the future?
Hear from Paul Kanareck (the Guardian), flagbearers of the voluntary donation model who has begun testing paywalls; Amy Lewin of Sifted, an example of how membership works for niche media; Tara Lajumoke (FT Strategies) powerhouses in the craft of hard paywalls; and David Taylor (Tortoise), where deep relationships with members are at the heart of their 'slow journalism' strategy.
Whether you are just getting started with reader revenue or have a well-developed subscription programme, this session will leave you with actionable tips to take back to your newsroom, as well as new questions to ponder.
15:00 - Workshop: Using AI to deliver relevant content for your audiences
JournalismAI is a project launched in 2019 by Polis, the journalism think-tank of the LSE, in collaboration with the Google News Initiative, to inform media organisations about the potential offered by AI-powered technologies. In this workshop led by Mattia Peretti, manager of JournalismAI, take a crash course on AI and machine learning for journalists, with a close look at the role of AI in finding out what your audiences most value and delivering content that meets those needs.
15:45 - Coffee break
Network with your fellow attendees and take time to reflect on the day so far. Refreshments provided.
16:15 - How can we best train and retain the journalists of the future?
This panel has one eye on the future and who comes through the ranks in the newsroom, as the UK industry continues to be dominated by white, middle class and university graduated journalists.
Dr Zahera Harb (City University), Emily Sexton-Brown (Insider), Jonathan Paterson (The News Movement) and Chandni Sembhi (So You Want to be a Journalist), will look at the best ways of ensuring our newsrooms are prepared to support new journalists and address the question of how you equip journalists with the right skills in a fast-changing industry. We will focus on how to ensure the industry becomes more representative of the people we write for, by putting diversity at the centre of training programmes.
17:00 - Closing remarks
A round-up of our lessons learned and our sincerest thanks for coming along
17:15 - Networking drinks
The bit you have all been dying for. Digest what you have learned throughout the day and exchange contact details with your peers and industry experts. Drinks and nibbles provided.
Do not miss out, grab your ticket now - and we will see you there
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