This week, I reflect on the current situation and predict how the year 2026 will influence local journalism in the wake of recent shocks in the news industry.
Most of my thoughts resonate with themes explored recently during a ceremony convened by journalism students at Daystar University, who run ‘Shine FM’ and the ‘Involve’ newspaper.
Among these were the ‘threatened’ future of print media and the role of Artificial Intelligence in newsrooms. Alongside veteran editors Joe Ageyo, Pamela Sittoni and James Onyango, we examined the local landscape, including issues like paywalls, convergence and business models in general.
I weighed in on why print is king. One uncontested truth I stressed was that for multimedia newsrooms such as Standard Group, Nation Media Group and Radio Africa Group, print pretty much remains the goose that lays the golden eggs no matter how much we ‘overate’ television, radio and digital platforms.
Questions flew fast. If print makes much of the money, why has circulation dropped by nearly 65 per cent across newsrooms? Why don’t we see people walking the streets holding newspapers as we did a few years ago?
Can a newspaper survive on its own without being part of a business that also owns radio and television? Simply put, can the ‘Daily Nation’ exist without NTV and Nation FM? Or can ‘The Standard’ stand on its feet without KTN and Spice FM, or ‘The Star’ without Classic FM?
Then came the answers. Print has only metamorphosed to embrace what I call the quality reset. It still thrives on trust and focused attention. Some scholars point to its ‘wealthier’ audiences and its sense of permanence.
Print reaches the ‘right’ people while digital reaches ‘more’ people. To cover for the shrinking print run, newspapers offer e-papers accessible via web or app. Because of digital circulation, the paper is no longer a product delivered once a day. That’s quite something!
On whether a print title can survive solo, I told the audience to look no further than the New York Times. It’s a classic example of how print can leverage high-quality journalism to endure. By building a trusted global brand, convincing loyal readers to pay for reliable content online, diversifying into apps and podcasts and leveraging digital for circulation, the ‘Times’ has thrived. The same can be done by local outlets.
The Daystar forum, led by seasoned trainers Levy Obonyo, Ann Anjao and Nathan Masambu, prompted deeper reflections, and here now is what my crystal ball sees for 2026.
Journalism will bend further around AI. Creativity and human flair will be threatened, and newsroom ‘laziness’ will be the ogre. Yet journalists will somehow avoid press conferences and invest more in investigative and people-centred storytelling.
We can expect further investments in content verification data journalism. Along with it, the Kenyan media will open its eyes and accept that political news has lost its allure.
Audiences care more about stories that touch their lives, rather than fleeting commentaries on what politicians and political parties say or do. Like in US media where Opinion (Op-Ed) sections take biased positions and even endorse candidates during elections, neutrality will die in our journalism.
With ‘The Standard’ (bold as it calls itself) having sustained stinging splashes throughout 2025, I foresee other outlets adopting unfiltered stances on key national issues. Expect more of ‘President, stop this’ splash headlines (opinionated reporting) we read a day after DCP leader Rigathi Gachagua was attacked in Nyeri on January 25.
Meanwhile, public editors will be back and bolder. In an era where audiences are consistently alert, the ‘ombudsman’ will be a critical feedback loop. In 2026, newsrooms will noticeably diversify representation in content, with greater visibility for women and youth.
On funding, loyal audiences and niche communities will donate to support good journalism. A more important prediction? Media firms facing bottom-line pressures will rebound.
Ahead of the charged 2027 polls, newsrooms won’t compete to break stories but to get it right. There will be a more nuanced return to peer reviews. Self-regulation will be the norm. Yes, the Fourth Estate will avoid an ‘egg in the face’ moment in 2026.
-The writer is a communications practitioner.
