Jack Simpson

‘Original data is so crucial to what we do’: Media interview with Jack Simpson, money reporter at The Times

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The announcement of the Budget is always an important date in the diary for anybody working in media and communications, especially with a Chancellor that is under increasing pressure and a Labour Government that continues to struggle in the polls.

But what is the day like to cover as a journalist? We caught up with The Times’ money reporter Jack Simpson to talk about exactly that, as well as how PRs can help most effectively on the day, and what else can be done to make the relationship between the two smoother in the future.

What’s it like to cover the Budget announcement as a money reporter?

It’s quite interesting, because ahead of the day there’s so much planning and organisation that goes into it. Weeks out, reporters are being asked to try and find budget case studies that you can line up, get people pictured and have ready to go. On the day of the budget, you have people at your fingertips who can speak on different issues and respond to it, which is something people might not know. The day itself is also why you’re in journalism and is really exhilarating because you’re responding to all the announcements.

This year there was a lot of policy kite-flying from the Government, so we knew a lot of the policies that were coming in advance. We also got the OBR report before the budget was actually released, which helped in terms of lining stories up. But the hard work starts after the speech takes place. You write the quick, snap news stories, but then you’re looking at angles to take stories on. So, on the Thursday, for example, I was tasked with trying to find a case study of someone who was hit by the mansion tax, who had bought their property for a really low price many decades ago, but now it’s worth well over two million. That involved me trudging around Notting Hill, knocking on doors and trying to find someone, and I found this lovely 88-year-old woman called Eimear Murphy, who bought a house in 1970 for £4,000, and now it’s worth around £4 million. She’d be hit by it, but she didn’t have much income. That hopefully shows what it’s like.

Did anything come up in the Budget that you weren’t expecting and then had to report on?

I was focusing mainly on mansion tax but I suppose that inheritance tax for the infected blood scandal, we weren’t expecting and it came out. Also there was an increase in income tax on profits made by landlords of 2%. We’d heard that there might be something with landlords, but that it would more relate to the National Insurance contribution. That was a little bit of a surprise, but on Budget day, you’ve got your role and you’re almost blinkered to that. It’s not until later in the day, when you kind of take it all in, that you kind of see the other things that have been announced, and pick the details out of that.

When covering major stories like the Budget or the cost-of-living crisis, what is the most helpful information from PRs during this time?

I think data is so important in personal finance journalism. If you can come up with an interesting angle, or be able to crunch the numbers to show that the impact of X policy will be this on a certain demographic or person, that sort of thing is what we’re really looking for. In the fallout from the Budget, we want to know how much this tax will cost, for example, a mid-earner over the next three years. That sort of data and original data is so crucial to what we do.

The other thing that I see journalists post about on social media is getting 600 emails on Budget day and getting loads of the same quotes. PRs have these experts at their fingertips, and I think it’s worth speaking to them and trying to find novel and interesting new angles from them, because that’s what the journalists want. After the initial wave of writing the pieces about the Budget, they’re looking for the next angle on what has been announced or an interesting new angle or outcome of certain policy. So I’d always recommend a chat with your experts and seeing if there’s new things that you can come up with, because that’s what really grabs our attention.

You’ve previously covered business and transport at The Guardian and The Telegraph respectively – what do PRs need to know about the work of a reporter with a specific patch to cover?

The best PRs are the ones I can speak to openly and honestly about what I need. I know I can pick up the phone and they will tell me straight away that they can either provide me with what I want or that they can’t. A lot of PRs just pitch blindly and send press releases and that’s not helpful to me.

Quality definitely overtakes quantity in terms of what you’re sending through to a journalist. I would say really think about that journalist, who they are, who they’re working for, what kind of stories they’ve covered before, and then really try and tailor stuff to them. Too often you get absolutely swamped with information and therefore it’s much more effective if you tailor the email. Then once you get one successful interaction, you start building that relationship and then more stories will come from it.

What would make the PR/journalists relationships smoother and more beneficial for both sides, in your opinion?

I’ve always thought that an open and honest relationship with PRs makes it really worthwhile. Nothing’s ever personal – if you write a bad story about a company or a negative story, it’s usually based on facts. I think that they’re the most helpful and beneficial relationships when you can just be open and honest with the PR and I think that works both ways. Other than that, from the point of view of the PR, it’s just taking a bit more time to think about who you’re aiming your pitches at and whether they will land, and maybe take a bit more time to think about it.

For extra help with your pitching to the media, check out the Vuelio Media Database. and ResponseSource Journalist Enquiry Service.

The Best PR campaigns of 2025

Cyber scares, out of this world spokespeople, but nothing is beating a Jet2 holiday: The best comms campaigns of 2025

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In the year when AI promised to super-charge the creative side of comms (and did so with rather mixed results *ahem* Coca-Cola and McDonald’s), PR teams continued to hit it out of the park with inventive, groundbreaking, shocking, and cute campaigns and content, both with and without AI.

We asked PRs across the industry for their favourite comms campaigns of 2025 – hat tips go to Jet2, Marks & Spencer, Medichecks, and even Peppa Pig…

Want pointers on creating your own top campaigns for the year ahead? Check out these 14 PR and comms trends coming up in 2026.

Buses that were right on time from MAC & Co.

Ronke Lawal, PR Consultant, Ariatu Public Relations

‘It’s always difficult to pick just one. I rave about Bemi Orojuogun aka the Bus Aunty who though doesn’t represent just one PR campaign has been used in integrated campaigns – I really loved the work that Iman Leila Bokolo, Acting Senior Communications & PR Manager at MAC Cosmetics, did on the MAC bus campaign. Seamless execution and perfectly timed.’

Much love for ‘Love, Actually’

Matt Brown, CEO, W Communications

‘I loved campaigns that rejected over-engineered gimmicks and instead tapped directly into culture, whether that was using experiential stunts that earned genuine social momentum, or targeted pitches that made it into the right publications and then surfaced again via GEO. The best work this year proved that if the story is strong, the execution doesn’t need to be complicated.

‘A great example is Stanley Tucci’s recent work for San Pelligrino – a wonderful campaign! And a festive favourite is Google Pixel’s new ‘Love, Actually’ spoof.

Natalie Trice, Author, Media Commentator, PR & Brand Expert, Natalie Trice Publicity

‘I absolutely adore this year’s Waitrose Christmas campaign! We have the nostalgia of ‘Love Actually’, bringing in the supermarket’s scrumptious food as an act of care and bringing caring and connection back to life. There is nothing like a good love story and this is first class nostalgia with modern day elements. Five stars to the chef!’

Big congratulations to Mummy Pig

Dominique Daly, Director, Hope&Glory

‘I could sit here and extol the wonderful campaigns from H&G, because there’s been many (from launching IKEA Oxford Street to surprising and delighting cabbies in The Fare Game for Carlsberg through to the stunning ringing of the Bells at St Paul’s for GOSH) but let’s not do that (like what I did there?!).

‘Across PR Land, a personal favourite that gave me the “ugh, I wish I’d got to work on that” moment was the UnDropped Kit by ASICS. An insight close to my heart with a well-thought-through delivery. Now I just hope there’s a way schools can actually get hold of it.

‘And no wrap-up of the year can be complete without a shout-out to the meticulously phased pregnancy of Mummy Pig. From social to print to online to broadcast, it got everyone chatting. Again and again and again. A fantastic creative idea, beautifully executed.’

Amber Steventon, MD & Founder, Azaria

‘One standout for me was the arrival of a new baby in the Peppa Pig household. In my 30-year career, it’s one of the rare occasions where a children’s TV animation not only captured public imagination but also made it onto mainstream media and even national news channels. It was a brilliant reminder that thoughtful storytelling, even for young audiences, can create huge cultural impact.’

Nothing beat the Jet2 holiday memes

David Sykes, Head of PR, Carrington

‘We all know that “Nothing beats a Jet2 holiday” – and I loved the social media trend that appeared completely organically, cementing the lines from the unrelentingly cheerful adverts into our minds this summer. It’s hard to describe this as a PR campaign per se, because the actual company had very little to do with it, other than making the original adverts which social media users took the audio from. It may have started with people overlaying the audio and music over the top of horrifying scenes of nightmare holidays, but it became ubiquitous – with Jess Glynne concerts becoming viral moments, Americans being amazed at how joyful British adverts are and the voice actor, Zoe Lister, giving her reaction to it on news platforms around the world.

‘This trend proved that PR and marketing has a weirdly strong influence over our national culture, because it turns out almost everyone in Britain can recite more of the Jet2 adverts than we ever would have thought possible.’

Surf was up in Scotland

Sarah Owen, Founder and CEO, Pumpkin PR

‘My favourite PR campaign of this year caught my eye because I am an old surfer. The Lost Shore Surf Resort in Scotland is a disused quarry which was turned into an inland surfing destination and it launched a fully integrated campaign combining experiential events, influencer activations and media outreach. The result was nearly 300 media features, strong public engagement and tangible bookings. It was a perfect example of how creative, experience-led campaigns can generate both buzz and real business outcomes.

Medichecks made some noise

Charlotte Dovey, Founder, Quince Creative Communications

‘One of my favourite campaigns this year was Medichecks’ Don’t Shh Me initiative, which directly challenged how often women feel dismissed by the healthcare system. It stood out because it wasn’t just about brand awareness – it created a movement that encouraged women to speak up, seek answers and feel validated in their health journeys.

‘I admire campaigns focused on normalising conversations around health and mental wellbeing, particularly those making complex or stigmatised issues more accessible without sensationalising them. These campaigns demonstrate how PR can be used not just to sell, but to support, educate and empower.’

AI scare awareness from Virgin Media

Kerry Parkin, founder, The Remarkables and The Mark

‘One of my standout campaigns this year was Virgin Media’s AI scam-prevention initiative. It struck exactly the right balance of public education, creative storytelling, with technological relevance, too. By using AI to demonstrate how easily scammers can clone voices and manipulate personal data, the campaign made an abstract threat feel immediate and human. It was smart and socially responsible; it landed at a moment when public understanding of AI risk needed a step-change.

‘I also loved that the work showed PR at its best; it blended insight and creativity. Additionally, the purpose is to drive genuine behaviour change. It’s the kind of campaign that reminds our industry of its power when we combine sharp ideas with cultural need.

A strong comeback from crisis

Emma Streets, Associate Director, Tigerbond

‘Not a campaign as such, but one of the strongest pieces of overall communications has got to be Marks & Spencer, which has undergone a transformative year.

‘Despite the impact and discussion of its cyber incident in spring stretching into most of the year, the brand’s trust levels with the public and reputation have remained unaffected, and it’s committed to major growth plans, with its food and retail sales figures hitting their highest performance in a decade.’

Finally, a fuller football kit from Modibodi

Plamedie Poto-Poto, Senior Account Executive, CI Group

‘Modibodi x West Ham Womens FC: The lingerie healthcare brand announced that they are partnering with the women’s football team to become the first period underwear brand to feature on kit. The partnership is vital as it brings a spotlight to athletic women who face different issues performing whilst they’re menstruating but don’t feel comfortable to speak about it and like they just have to continue about their day feeling self-conscious. It’s a reminder that dealing with the different things that make you a woman doesn’t stop during a performance, game or match but with the right support you can still do your best.’

Made-up with make-up comms

Patrizia Galeota, PR Specialist & Podcast Host, PR LIKE A BOSS!

‘e.l.f. Beauty: “Give an e.l.f.” campaign: This 2025 global campaign paired the brand with social causes (LGBTQ+, empowerment, advocacy) and real-life activism. By combining bold visuals, genuine purpose, and inclusive representation, it made beauty brand PR about values and community, not just products.

‘Doja Cat x MAC Cosmetics at the 2025 VMAs: The lipstick-eating stunt (the lipstick was chocolate) was provocative, playful and perfectly timed, not just a “celebrity endorsement,” but an attention-grabbing, conversation-starting moment that commanded media and social coverage. It shows how PR in beauty can still shock and delight when done with creativity.’

An astronomically smart spokesperson choice

Gary Jenkins, MD, No Brainer

‘It feels like there’s been more creativity than ever in 2025 – and whether that’s been helped or hindered by AI is up for debate – however, a couple of campaigns stood out in 2025 and for very different reasons.

‘Firstly, Astronomer’s ‘temporary spokesperson’ moment with Gwyneth Paltrow turned a ‘company misstep’ into a world-class response by leaning into humour and owning the narrative before others did.

‘And WWF Denmark’s coffee-and-habitat investigation showed the power of substance – strong on-the-ground reporting, striking visuals and a clear human impact that pushed a complex supply-chain issue into mainstream coverage and real pressure for change.’

Mauro Battellini, Co-Founder, Black Unicorn PR

‘Coming from the startup tech side, and not household brand names, it’s less about campaigns that the public will know about. But one tech startup did make the rounds. Astronomer faced a disaster when their CEO’s affair was discovered at a Coldplay concert after trying to hide from the ‘kiss cam’. The scene went viral and thousands of memes started spreading. They made it into mainstream media and every person’s WhatsApp groups suddenly had memes of it. Their PR team cleverly used the timeliness and attention to hire Gwyneth Paltrow as spokesperson. In a video, she went through the scandal and used the opportunity to spread some of Astronomer’s key messages. It went viral and showed Astronomer confident in their future, leveraging humour to downplay the scandal. And of course, it went almost as viral as the kiss cam itself. It could have just ended with the scandal, but they did something more with it.’

Patagonia demanded more

Pamela Badham, Founder and CEO, Four Marketing Agency

‘Patagonia’s “Buy Less, Demand More” Movement. This campaign prioritised real human emotion, real-world action, and genuine transparency over high-gloss production or generative content, proving that the human element is the ultimate differentiator in modern PR.’

Llama dance party

Marco Fiori, Managing Director, Bamboo

‘Monday.com’s llama. The company has made project management software fun, funky and fresh.’

The mascot massacre at Duolingo

Claire Crompton, Co-Founder, TAL Agency

‘Who didn’t love this one? This campaign was a brilliant exercise in narrative disruption on digital. By “killing off” its own mascot, then teasing a resurrection tied to community engagement, it turned a routine app update into a viral moment. The layered storytelling – cryptic posts, user speculation, a “Bring Back Duo” interactive landing page – triggered a massive buzz on social media, with millions of views and a huge amount of user‑generated content as both people and brands jumped on board with their own versions.’

Ready for what 2026 will bring? Check out these 14 trends for PR and comms coming next year.

14 PR and comms trends for 2026

14 PR and comms trends for 2026

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2025 was a year of constant upheaval for all of the creative industries, as comms teams battled with the possibilities and realities of AI adoption; the media was irrevocably changed by the impact of LLMs and democratised content generation; and many communities across the world became increasingly siloed.

What will 2026 bring for PR and communications? Here are predictions from 24 PR industry experts already preparing for what’s ahead – take note of these PR trends for 2026…

1) Uncertainty

‘The signals for 2026 are unusually coherent.

‘Geopolitical volatility is no longer an externality; it is a daily operating condition for communication leaders. AI, meanwhile, is accelerating faster than organisational capability, widening the adoption gap and exposing the limits of shallow governance. Add to this a generational divergence in values, media behaviour and workplace expectations, and the pressure on leadership becomes structural, not cultural.

‘Traditional models such as PESO, demographic segmentation, and hierarchical messaging are breaking under the weight of distributed influence and AI-mediated discovery. High performance will depend on disciplined listening, foresight, intergenerational literacy, and a shift from output craft to organisational intelligence.’

– Stephen Waddington, co-director of Wadds Inc. and co-founder of Socially Mobile

‘For me, the biggest trend will be how PR responds to uncertainty. I suspect it will stop being treated as an exception and become the normal operating environment. Political instability, economic pressure and rapid technological change mean teams will spend less time “managing crises” and more time navigating constant change. As a result, judgement, leadership and clear communication will matter more than speed alone.’

– Andrew McLachlan, Head of Strategic Communications, Mediazoo

2) Further fragmentation of the media

‘The biggest challenge for our industry in 2026 will be working within a shrinking, more fragmented media landscape – fewer journalists, more niche outlets. It means those trusted relationships and highly targeted placements will be more valuable than ever.’

– Sarah Owen, Founder and CEO, Pumpkin PR

‘It’s already happened, but podcasts are reaching more people than ever – understanding how to promote and use the content on different platforms is savvy, economical and helps keeps organisations stay on message.’

– Gorki Duhra, PR Manager, RNIB

‘The days of relying on one or two social channels are over. With algorithms constantly changing and new platforms emerging, diversification will be key. Rather than chasing every trend, 2026 will be about choosing the right mix for your audience, from established spaces like Instagram and TikTok to the community-led platforms like Facebook or gardening forums. By broadening their digital footprint, garden brands can reach audiences where they already spend time, while reducing dependence on any single platform.’

– Holly Daulby, Managing Director, Honest Communications

‘I foresee a rise in “professional influencers”. More PR and comms pros will use digital platforms like TikTok and LinkedIn to share their insights to the wider world – not simply speaking to the industry but to the general population about key PR and comms issues. I also see the power of our algorithmic influence being something that really gains traction – how PR and Comms has the power to drive algorithmic narratives across multiple strands is an exciting thing to consider and study.’

– Ronke Lawal, PR Consultant, Ariatu Public Relations

3) Going niche

‘Sub communities of sub communities are where conversation is at its richest. With Reddit and online communities having increasing power on both AI and social chatter, PR campaigns that go super-niche and speak directly to those groups are going to fly and build a really engaged fan-base at the same time.’

– Dominique Daly, Director, Hope&Glory

4) Increased scrutiny and skepticism

‘I think agencies are going to come under scrutiny from clients about how they are using AI – clients will think they can do it themselves if you’re regularly using large language models as a starting point for content.’

– Joanne Gill, Director, Cyber Crisis Readiness & Response

‘With generative AI so widely used, all content – generated and genuine – will be viewed with caution because people are increasingly assuming that AI is behind most of what they see. A jaw-dropping photo? No way. A beautifully written poem? Probably AI. Fake products, fake reviews, fake images and videos are only going to be more common and harder to distinguish, so trust at all levels is going to be harder and harder to earn.

‘Brands need to counter this by making their products and messages more authentic in whatever ways they can. This could mean less polished promotional imagery, more behind-the-scenes realness, more personal connections and social media collaboration to give audiences more reason to trust what they have to offer. Hopefully, people will also trust the mainstream media more as a result, but they need to pull their socks up too.’

– David Sykes, Head of PR, Carrington

5) Imperfection as a mark of authenticity

‘A sharper focus and value on human authenticity. Human-created content, with its quirks, humour, and even minor flaws, is what marketing and PR are all about – because it feels relatable and real. That is what clients trust us to deliver. This deliberate embrace of “imperfect” storytelling is what will support agencies to stand out and brave this new AI era. Over adoption of AI will see client disconnect, leading to poor results and ultimately a negative impact on business for both parties.’

– Pamela Badham, Founder and CEO, Four Marketing Agency

‘PR teams who help brands to make an emotional connection with their consumers will contribute to their growth, even in tough economic conditions. Consumers don’t need polished messaging and perfect imagery, meaning PR can be low on cost providing you’re telling the right story. Whether you’re husband-and-wife distillers who have sunk all your savings into rescuing a historic water mill (Dunnet Bay Distillers) or an 85 year old dairy farmer who has embraced TikTok and become an influencer (Graham’s The Family Dairy), it’s these real, raw stories of human endeavour that connect with audiences in a sea of heavily curated content.’

– Eleanor Bradford, Director of Corporate Communications, Muckle Media Group

6) Real-time reputation recovery

‘Stakeholders will expect more real-time responses. Brands are shifting investment into scenario planning, faster cross-team alignment, and proactive issue-spotting.’

– Ruth Jones, CEO and Founder, 3THINKRS

‘We’ll also see reputation management evolve into a real-time discipline. Misinformation, rapid-cycle crises and deepfakes will require faster monitoring, shorter approval chains, and scenario planning that’s actually used – not just a ‘nice to have’ that’s filed away gathering dust.’

– Claire Crompton, Co-Founder, TAL Agency

7) The rise of GEO

‘2026 will be the year GEO, generative engine optimisation, will stop being a buzzword and become a core part of every comms strategy. As AI-driven search reshapes how people discover news, products, and brands, earned media will surge in importance again. If you aren’t landing high-quality coverage in trusted outlets, you simply won’t show up.’

– Matt Brown, CEO, W Communications

8) A clamour for case studies

‘PR professionals need to support the media by ensuring that pitches and content are highly targeted, relevant and human. More journalists are asking to interview spokespeople directly rather than relying on written responses, and there is a growing emphasis on proving the real expertise and credentials of those spokespeople.

‘The positive news is that PR teams are well placed to guide clients through this shifting landscape. It all comes back to building trust, developing clear and meaningful messaging, and demonstrating expertise across media and owned channels.’

– Claire Gamble, Managing Director, Unhooked Communications

9) Honesty

‘There’s debate in PR about whether being a “friend” to your client helps or harms growth. For us, it’s not about being a yes-person; it’s about honest counsel and integrity that runs at every level in the agency. That shared trust allows for frank conversations and leads to better outcomes.

‘Growth for me isn’t about being everywhere; it’s about being indispensable to the right people – and always keeping a step ahead on insights and opportunities.’

– Jane Pavia, Managing Director, Vista PR

10) Getting personal

‘2026 will be shaped by consumers seeking calm, comfort and control.

‘For all the excitement around AI, consumers ultimately want something profoundly human: brands that respect their time, reduce stress and help them make better choices. The mantra for 2026? Do less that is fast, do more that is meaningful – and let authentic intelligence guide you.’

– Anthony Tattum, CMO, Leopard Co

‘With so much content being created by AI and fake case studies and news filling up journalists’ inboxes, PRs will have to get even more personal and creative in landing their stories. Journalists will actively seek out those PRs they can trust to give them legit news, which means building relationships will matter more than ever. If any organisation thinks they will be able to produce content with AI, think again. 2026 will be all about authentic and interesting stories – anything and everything to put us further away from typical AI cliches. Yes, it will be challenging, but the challenges will help differentiate between magic and artibots.’

– Dinara Omarova, director, Peach Perfect PR

‘Smarter-than-ever targeting, continuing to focus on building strong relationships, tighter angles offering exclusivity and hyper-focused on the platform, and adding genuine value in the form of useful assets, data, access, or experts for example tailored to the platform – they will win in 2026 and beyond. The days of spray and pray media ‘targeting’ are gone and relationship-first now beats volume every time.’

– Gary Jenkins, MD, No Brainer

11) Flexibility

‘In 2026, the PR and communications industry will need to become far more value-driven, agile and purpose-led. Clients are increasingly questioning what they’re actually paying for, and are no longer willing to overlook hefty agency fees that largely cover overheads such as office space and infrastructure rather than talent, strategy or delivery.

‘There’s already been a clear shift towards smaller, more agile agencies winning major briefs – not because they’re cheaper, but because they’re proving they can deliver the same (or better) results with sharp thinking and leaner operations.

‘We’ll see a move away from traditional, rigid agency structures and towards flexible agency models that unite specialist talent networks, rather than expecting in-house or agency teams to be “jacks of all trades.” By bringing in the right experts for each project instead of relying on one-size-fits-all roles, agencies can deliver higher-quality work, remain more agile, and focus on results and impact rather than office presence or hierarchy.

‘It also has a bigger impact on the industry as a whole. This shift enables more experienced professionals – particularly parents, carers, and those navigating health or life challenges – to stay in the workforce and continue contributing their expertise without being forced out by outdated agency expectations.’

– Charlotte Dovey, Founder, Quince Creative Communications

12) Press releases (yes, really)… but with a twist

‘PR teams have always built stories for human audiences. In 2026, they’ll build them with the understanding that AI is becoming an early interpreter of every brand, business, and organisation. This is where the press release will step back into the spotlight. Journalists rely on it as a verified source of truth, and AI is beginning to treat it the same way. When teams don’t supply clear, authoritative information, models generate their own version, which travels fast and shapes perception long before anyone sees a headline. The industry needs to be ready for that shift.’

– Lizi Sprargue, Co-Founder, Songue PR

‘My biggest prediction is that the press release will no longer be the centrepiece of communications – but rather a supporting document in a much larger ecosystem of storytelling, cultural engagement, and credibility-building. Successful PR will shift from announcement to storytelling. And what will define PR in 2026 is speed, narrative, and trust.’

– Sheridan Okey, Head of PR, Tribera

13) Virtual immersion

‘Immersive, hybrid (phygital) storytelling & experiences. The divide between “digital campaign” and “real-world activation” will shrink further. More brands will explore virtual press events, AR/VR product experiences, interactive storytelling, delivering beauty not just through words or visuals, but through experiential, sensory engagement.
‘For beauty brands especially, this opens doors to try-at-home virtual make-up filters, immersive product launches, experiential retail + digital storytelling combos, and more.’

– Patrizia Galeota, PR Specialist & Podcast Host of PR LIKE A BOSS!

14) And AI, of course… but with ethics

‘We won’t be able to escape the impact of AI and how it can help our work. I just don’t want to see any PR disasters caused by its misuse! Reputation really does include AI ethics.’

– Stephanie Mullins-Wiles, Strategic Communications, Marketing and PR, BlueSky Education

For more on navigating the media ecosystem in 2026 and beyond, check out our Vuelio report ‘How news travels in today’s fragmented media environment’. 

Lumina featured image

Introducing Lumina: The AI Suite built from the ground up for PR & Comms

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The media moves faster than ever, influence shifts in seconds, and today’s leaders are expected to understand every angle instantly. To navigate this, public relations professionals don’t need generic tools—they need technology that speaks their language.

That is why we’re unveiling Lumina, a new intelligent suite of AI tools from Vuelio. Trained specifically on the workflows and realities of modern PR & communications, Lumina helps you surface critical insights faster — and use your time, skills and judgement where they bring most value.

Lumina - Stories & Perspectives

‘The PR, Comms and Public Affairs sectors have been experimenting with AI, but most tools have not been built with their real challenges in mind,’ said Joanna Arnold, CEO of Pulsar Group (Vuelio’s parent organisation).

‘Lumina is different; it is the first intelligence suite designed around how narratives actually form today, combining human credibility signals with machine-level analysis. It helps teams understand how stories evolve, filter out noise and respond with context and confidence to crises and opportunities.’

A new standard for PR intelligence

Lumina is about empowering, not replacing, the human element of communications. The suite of AI tools is designed to help PR, comms and public affairs pros improve productivity, enhance clarity, and spot risks early.

  • Understand & Interpret: Move beyond simple alerts to map how stories spread.
  • Focus & Personalise: Gain the clarity to act before the moment moves on.
  • Execute & Monitor: Rapidly action strategy rooted in insight.

Available now: Stories & Perspectives

We are kicking off the launch of Lumina by immediately releasing our first module: Stories & Perspectives.

Lumina - How can I help you today?

In the current fragmented media environment, a list of clips and alerts is no longer enough to give you the full picture. You need to know not just what is being said, but how it is being perceived.

Stories & Perspectives organises mentions into a clustered set of stories, reflecting different media, audience, and stakeholder angles. It allows you to:

  • Rise above the noise: See at a glance which topics are gaining traction or fading.
  • Zoom in on the details: Uncover the voices and communities shaping the narrative.
  • Catch the pivot point: Identify the exact moment a story shifts from an opportunity to a reputation risk, or when a new voice begins guiding the conversation.

‘Media isn’t a stream of mentions,’ said Kyle Lindsay, Head of Product at Pulsar Group. ‘But rather a living system of stories shaped by competing perspectives. When you can see those structures clearly, you gain the ability to understand issues as they form, anticipate how they’ll evolve, and act with precision. That’s what we mean when we talk about AI built for communicators, and that’s what an off-the-shelf LLM can’t give you.’

The road ahead: a full suite of AI tools designed for PR & comms

Stories & Perspectives is just the beginning. Over the coming months, we will be rolling out the full Lumina roadmap, introducing a comprehensive set of tools designed to handle every aspect of the communications lifecycle.

Here is what you can expect to see joining the suite soon:

  • Curated media summaries: AI summaries customised to leadership priorities, highlighting the stories that matter most each day.
  • Reputation analysis: measurement of how themes like ethics, innovation, and leadership are shaping your perception.
  • Press release & media relations assistant: tools to create focused pitches that reach the right contacts, faster.
  • Predictive intelligence layer: technology to track story momentum and anticipate change before the window of opportunity closes.
  • Intelligent agents: background agents scanning continuously for key spokespeople and emerging risks.
  • Enhanced audio, broadcast & crisis detection: complete oversight of what is being said across every channel, allowing you to build context fast and deliver the best response.

Get in touch to register your interest.


Not for profit media fragmentation

Advocacy in the media ecosystem: Today’s PR playbook for the charity sector

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The third sector is built on driving change, raising awareness, and giving voice to the voiceless, and today’s media landscape has a plethora of platforms offering access to wider audiences. But with these platforms so fragmented, how can Not-For-Profit organisations connect with audiences spread across online forums, social media, national press, broadcast, and more?

Vuelio’s latest report ‘How news travels in today’s fragmented media environment’ tracks a number of major public interest and politically-driven news stories from the first half of 2025 to provide a map for comms teams in need of coverage for their campaigns.

Here are key insights for comms teams in the third sector:

1. Niche reach outlets are just as valuable as mass media

National news coverage might be impressive to the board, but a crucial lesson for health charities, research bodies, and policy-focused organisations is that tabloid coverage shouldn’t be the ultimate aim for every campaign.

Reaching a small, engaged group of clinicians, academics, or policymakers with a write-up in a specialist journal can be infinitely more impactful for your mission than a fleeting, 10-second mention on breakfast TV.

Have a story that would work for very distinct audiences? Try a two-track comms plan: one for your specialist stakeholders and one for your mainstream fundraising, without risking a generic multipurpose approach that is unlikely to be picked up by the press at all.

2. Politics adds unpredictability

For any charity involved in advocacy, the impact of politics in amplifying, or silencing, a campaign will be very familiar.

Kelly Scott, VP at Vuelio, describes the journey of public interest stories as a ‘pinball machine’ – either pinging to unexpected places from political realms, or quickly falling out of play.

If your issue gets politicised, picked up for party gain, or distorted, motivating third party stakeholders to speak on your behalf can be the most credible asset for the third sector.

Service users, your volunteers, and your academic partners can add credibility and balance to the public discourse.

3. Echo chambers can stop a story in its tracks

The UK media landscape is severely siloed, with one example from our latest report being coverage of surge pricing in the UK. Reporting on this issue was split, with audiences largely staying in their own echo chambers, experiencing further reinforcement of their own existing takes and opinions.

For the Charity sector, breaking through this is a critical challenge. A campaign on the cost-of-living crisis could be framed as a human-interest tragedy in one silo, and a complex economic policy failure in another.

The job of the comms team is to find the ‘connectors’ that break through these siloes – identifying and building relationships with figures and platforms that cut across barriers and build public trust.

4. Your advocacy is the story

Some of the most powerful stories that pick up speed in the press are public interest, and these often start life on social media. But also important are case studies – connecting the media with real people, who have real stories to tell.

This happens to be a superpower for the charity sector. Your work is built on personal experiences and advocacy for communities – amplifying voices, and engaging with people across platforms, can be the engine of an entire media strategy.

5. Adapting to mission-driven comms

This fragmented world requires a new strategy, one built on agility and insight. As Amy Chappell, Head of Insights at Vuelio, advises, comms professionals must ’embed adaptability into comms strategy’.

This means having spokespeople and expert commentators ready to engage. In this landscape, the most credible and authoritative voices will retain a degree of control.

Ultimately, your strategy must shift:

From Endpoint to Ecosystem: Stop treating a press release or a media hit as the “finish line”. Instead, anticipate how your story will evolve as it’s passed between different platforms and audiences.

From Counting to Navigation: Monitoring is no longer about counting clippings. It’s about understanding how narratives are reframed along the way, so you know exactly when to step in, clarify, or amplify.

This new environment is complex, but for charities, it’s a playing field filled with opportunity. Authentic stories can find their audiences in a myriad of ways.

For more on how stories move through the modern media landscape, read the full Vuelio white paper here. 

AMEC AI insight

AI in measurement: Counting, connecting, and getting attention in the algorithm

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The world of visibility is changing fast. As large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT become new information gatekeepers, PR is no longer just competing for audience attention. It’s competing for algorithmic inclusion.

In a digital landscape increasingly shaped by automated content, the quality, credibility, and authority of earned media have never mattered more. What cuts through now is not simply how much content exists, but which content is trusted enough to be cited, surfaced, and amplified by both humans and machines.

At the same time, the way we measure communications is evolving just as rapidly. Our Head of Insights Amy Chappell recently attended the AMEC AI Day, and one message stood out: AI isn’t here to replace human intelligence – it’s here to enhance it. Measurement professionals are no longer just counting the past; we’re connecting data to insight, outcomes, and influence in ways previously impossible at scale.

Together, these shifts point to a fundamental change in how PR and measurement work hand in hand in an AI-driven world: Credible storytelling fuels visibility, and intelligent measurement proves its impact.

Why earned media still dominates

Research presented at the AMEC AI Day suggests that around 90% of AI visibility comes from earned sources, not paid placements. That’s because LLMs favour content that is accessible, credible, and editorially independent. Paid content often falls short on two counts:
It sits behind paywalls or sponsorship disclosures, reducing citability.

It lacks the credibility signals that LLMs prioritise when determining trusted sources.

In an era when 60% of Google searches end without a click, visibility increasingly depends on being cited rather than clicked. AI-generated summaries pull from high-authority, earned sources, meaning quality and credibility of coverage matter more than ever.

The new role of qualitative metrics

If AI models prioritise credible coverage, it’s no longer enough to measure volume or sentiment alone. Understanding the authority and influence of sources, and how well your coverage aligns with your strategic narrative, becomes essential to assessing impact across both human and AI audiences.

In a landscape where automated content is multiplying, human-authored, well-sourced journalism carries greater weight.

That’s why the focus must shift from volume to value: not how many pieces you secured, but how credible, contextual, and influential those pieces are.

Emerging ideas like ‘share of answer’ (which explore how brands appear in AI-generated responses) hint at where measurement might go next. But these are still early indicators, not yet established metrics.

How we measure in the age of AI

Metrics like share of search and Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) scores are early attempts to quantify visibility in AI environments. But as discussed at the AMEC AI Day, the industry is still testing and calibrating what “good” looks like.

The takeaway? Don’t measure for measurement’s sake.

Storytelling still drives machine understanding

AI is reshaping how visibility works, but not what makes it valuable. The best route to long-term visibility, with both audiences and algorithms, remains the same: authentic earned media, built on credible storytelling, relationships, and expertise.

As the line between human and machine audiences blurs, PR’s superpower endures, creating messages that are not only seen and read, but also trusted.

Where AI supports measurement

AI can assist across every stage of the workflow:

Collection and cleaning: unifying messy inputs from multiple sources.

Categorisation: speeding up tagging and sentiment analysis while ensuring consistency across languages.

Insight generation and prediction: highlighting emerging risks, narratives or audience shifts earlier.

AI’s strengths are clear: speed, scalability, consistency, and cross-market comparability. But its weaknesses are just as important to understand: opaque decision-making, bias in training data, false confidence in generative summaries, and the temptation to switch off human critical thinking.

That’s why we will see a shift from analysts acting less as ‘data producers’ and more as ‘insight curators’, allowing us to spend more time understanding, interpreting, and recommending than ever before. New skills are emerging: prompt engineering, validation, ethical reasoning, and bias checking. These sit alongside the fundamentals: empathy, relevance, and context.

Human accountability remains essential in measurement

Governance is catching up fast. AMEC is developing standards to ensure ethical use of AI in measurement. But the guiding principle is simple: AI can enhance, not replace, human judgment.

The best measurement programmes will use automation for efficiency, freeing up analysts to focus on interpretation, storytelling and strategy. The industry is shifting from manual counting to intelligent contextualisation, and AI is the accelerator helping us get there.

Preparing for the next era of visibility

AI is not a passing trend in communications and measurement; it’s a structural shift in how visibility, influence, and trust are created and understood. For PR teams, that means doubling down on what machines can’t replicate: credible relationships, meaningful narratives, and human judgment. For measurement professionals, it means evolving from trackers of activity to interpreters of influence.

The organisations that will lead in this next era will be those that combine high-quality earned media with intelligent, accountable use of AI, using technology to go faster and further, without losing sight of strategy, ethics, or impact.

Want help with measuring the success of your campaigns? Find out more about Vuelio Insights.

For more about the impact of AI tools on the media and measurement spaces, check out key takeaways shared at the 2025 Press Gazette Future of Media Technology Conference.

Navigating the modern media maze for brands

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In 2025, the idea of a story travelling directly from the PR team, to the newsroom, straight to the right audience is long gone. Today, stories scatter, ricochet, and sometimes completely transform as they pass through an ecosystem of platforms.

For in-house comms teams at big UK brands tasked with securing significant attention for their campaigns, this fragmented environment can feel chaotic and difficult to circumnavigate. But it’s also full of opportunity – here is what brand comms teams need to know for connecting with audiences now…

From broadcast to broadband: the shape of today’s media

According to the latest Reuters Institute Digital News Report, UK audiences have shifted away from print and TV (down to just 12% and 48% respectively) towards an online-first, mobile-led media landscape.

Statistics from Reuters Institute

For PRs, this means the traditional ‘top-down’ model of securing coverage and waiting for amplification no longer applies. Every story now takes a unique, often unpredictable route through the media ecosystem.

This doesn’t mean that ‘traditional’ media isn’t important – long-trusted media brands have simply branched out into a number of new formats, and audiences can be found spread among them.

Stories take unexpected turns

Vuelio’s latest report ‘How news travels in today’s fragmented media environment’ tracked specific stories across the first half of 2025 – from the AI for Heart Health innovation to the Zero Hour Contract Ban. The findings reveal just how differently narratives can evolve:

AI for Heart Health stayed niche and technical, thriving in academic journals and specialist sites before making a surprise leap to tabloids when an AI pyjamas invention caught the press imagination.

Low Traffic Neighbourhoods moved from hyper-local activism on Reddit and X into national election talking points.

Surge Pricing split the nation’s media in two: broadsheets debated regulation and market fairness, while tabloids raged about pint and gig prices.

Zero Hour Contracts began as social storytelling – people sharing experiences online – before policy debate brought it into mainstream broadcasting.

Stories showcasing media fragmentation

These examples highlight a key lesson: media coverage is no longer linear, but lateral. Stories can leap between siloes, or split into parallel versions depending on who picks them up.

The new rules of engagement

As Vuelio’s VP of Government & Stakeholder Kelly Scott notes, ‘The journey of public interest stories can be like a pinball machine — hitting political buffers that change their course’.

Brands are particularly subject to regulation and therefore political interest. Managing reputation in this landscape means engaging quickly, across both media and political spheres.

Correcting misinformation, activating credible third-party voices, and keeping stakeholder networks mobilised are now essentials, not extras.

Amy Chappell, Vuelio’s Head of Insights, adds:

Amy Chappell quote on media fragmentation

‘Each platform, each audience, leaves its imprint. A story isn’t a fixed communication anymore – it’s a fluid journey shaped by who picks it up and how it’s retold.’

How brands can adapt

For in-house comms leaders, this fragmentation requires a mindset shift:

Think ecosystem, not endpoint. A press release isn’t the end of your campaign — it’s the start of a story’s evolution. Map where it might travel next.

Monitor for meaning, not mentions. Media monitoring should track how narratives are reframed across outlets and audiences, not just tally coverage.

Plan for pivots. Build adaptability into campaign design. Prep spokespeople and experts to engage at pace when narratives shift.

Bridge your siloes. Media, comms, and public affairs teams can’t operate separately anymore – their worlds now overlap daily.

Opportunity in the fragmentation

Fragmentation isn’t just a challenge – it’s fertile ground for smarter strategy. With the right insight, the right relationships, and the right timing, stories can thrive in unexpected places.

As Burson’s Head of Media Relations Strategy Sean Allen-Moy puts it:

Sean Allen-Moy quote on media fragmentation

‘To succeed, brands must know precisely where their audience consumes content and meet them there.’

For UK comms professionals, the task is to treat this new landscape not as a maze to get lost in, but as a map full of alternative routes. Because in 2025, the story doesn’t stop at publication – it starts there.

Want more on navigating this new media landscape? Check out the full story in Vuelio’s latest report ‘How news travels in today’s fragmented media environment’.

What PRs need to know about CLA

What PR agencies need to know about the CLA

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In PR, success is measured in visibility. That means getting coverage in the right titles, shared with the right people, at the right time. But when it comes to sharing that success, copyright compliance can be difficult to navigate. Whether you’re distributing press clippings to clients, showcasing coverage on your website, or using published content in campaign reports, you need permission to do so.

You may already be familiar with NLA media access, which licenses the reuse of newspaper, magazine, and news website content. But what about the huge range of other published material, like books, journals, magazines, and websites? That’s where the Copyright Licensing Agency (CLA) comes in.

What is the CLA?

The CLA, a regulated not-for-profit organisation, licenses organisations to lawfully use, copy, and share text and image-based content owned by authors, publishers, and visual artists. Revenues are distributed to owners, ensuring fair compensation for rights holders and support for the UK’s creative economy.

Through its collective licences, CLA provides blanket permissions to reuse millions of books, journals, magazines, and websites, including international titles from the US and beyond. Its licences allow businesses, public sector bodies, and educational institutions to copy, share, and reuse content without infringing copyright.

For PR and advertising agencies, this means you can legally share coverage, insights, and published materials with clients and colleagues, without the risk.

CLA and NLA: What’s the difference?

It’s a common misconception that one licence covers all published content. In reality, CLA and NLA media access manage different repertoires:

  • CLA covers books, journals, most magazines, and over 10,000 websites.
  • NLA covers UK national and regional newspapers, selected magazines, and around 4,000 websites.

There’s no overlap. If your agency shares content from both sets of sources, you’ll need both licences to stay compliant.

Why copyright compliance matters in PR

PR and marketing campaigns often rely on high-impact words, compelling visuals, and timely media coverage. But taking content from the internet or forwarding articles without permission can lead to serious consequences, including fines, reputational damage, and even the loss of a client.

One of the biggest fears among agencies is a client being contacted by a copyright holder because reused content wasn’t properly cleared. Another is having to scrap a campaign because the creative assets can’t be legally used. These risks are real and avoidable.

Copyright compliance isn’t just about avoiding mistakes. It’s about building trust, demonstrating professionalism, and protecting the creative ecosystem that PR relies on.

Which CLA Licence do PR agencies need?

There are two main CLA licences relevant to PR and comms teams:

Business Licence

The CLA Business Licence gives organisations blanket permission to copy, print, scan, and digitally share (e.g. email or upload) published content internally, covering:

  • Intranets and shared drives
  • Internal emails and presentations
  • Campaign planning and team collaboration

It also includes Workplace Generative AI permissions, allowing teams to use published content as prompts in permitted AI tools for things like summarisation, ideation and analysis.

Media Consultancy Licence

Designed specifically for PR, advertising and communications agencies, the Media Consultancy Licence is an essential add-on to the main CLA Business Licence, empowering PR and media agencies to lawfully share content with their clients.

It’s ideal for agencies that report on media coverage, showcase results, and want to ensure copyright compliance while doing so.

What publications are covered?

With a CLA licence, you are permitted to copy and share millions of publications, including books, journals, magazines and websites. CLA’s Check Permissions search tool lets you see what you can copy, share or re-use legally under each type of licence.

Why licensing builds credibility

Retained clients are the holy grail for PR agencies. And while great campaigns and strong results are essential, credibility plays a huge role in client retention. That credibility isn’t just built through awards or viral success, it’s built through professionalism, transparency, and ethical practice.

Licensing helps agencies:

  • Avoid legal pitfalls and protect clients
  • Streamline internal processes with blanket permissions
  • Build trust through transparent reporting
  • Support the creative industries that fuel PR success

Amplify your coverage with peace of mind

With a CLA licence, agencies can also republish up to five articles at a time on their websites, perfect for showcasing media coverage and building credibility. It also enables smarter client consultancy, helping clients understand their media landscape and the impact of PR efforts.

And yes, it makes you look good. Licensing demonstrates professionalism, respect for creators, and a commitment to ethical practice, all qualities that resonate with journalists, clients, and partners alike.

Want to Learn More?

Explore the CLA website to find the right licence for your agency, search the repertoire, or speak to the CLA team for tailored advice.

For more about copyright licencing, read our PR guide to the NLA.

Beyond the front page

Beyond the front page: A playbook for agency PR in a fragmented media world

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For agency professionals in public relations, communications, and public affairs, the old PR playbook is officially out, with the traditional, top-down method of disseminating information – pitching your press release to a national, getting a front-page splash, and watching your story spread – a thing of the past. Today, comms operates on a fragmented map with no clearly marked course forward.

This multi-platform media environment, defined by complex and unpredictable story journeys, is a fresh field of opportunity for comms professionals who understand its new rules. For agencies, it’s a time to update strategies, redefine what success means for clients, and integrate public affairs and media relations efforts more closely than ever before.

To help, here are key pointers for agencies:

1. Redefine ‘Success’: Niche is the new national

Despite the huge variety of platforms out there, plenty of clients continue to put pressure on agencies for a front-page splash. But a story doesn’t have to hit the front page of a national newspaper to reach a significant audience.

Analysing a specific story’s journey highlights the different routes available to agencies and their brands. Tracking coverage and conversation around the topic of ‘AI for Heart Health’, for example, shows that tabloid coverage shouldn’t be the ultimate aim for every campaign.

This story’s spread was rooted in organic, community-driven conversation, starting on forums, and moving to academic papers, journals, and websites, successfully reaching very specific, and highly valuable, stakeholder audiences.

A crucial distinction for agency client management – volume alone doesn’t tell the whole story. Reaching a small but highly-engaged audience of experts, academics, or policymakers can be far more valuable than a fleeting mention on a national broadcast.

This also applies to formats. While radio coverage volume might dwarf that of podcasts, for example, the latter has a dedicated audience of downloaders, much more likely to be engaged with the content. For our clients, landing that perfect niche podcast could be a more strategic win than a dozen scattered radio clips.

Which stories find a home on which platforms?

2. Manage the ‘pinball machine’ of politics

Public affairs and politics are now almost inseparable from PR, and should be considered as part of any campaign.

Vuelio’s Kelly Scott describes public interest stories as potential ‘pinballs’, that can ‘hit a political buffer, bouncing around further, racking up more coverage… potentially distorting the story if it becomes politicised for party gain.

Kelly Scott quote

‘If your media team and public affairs team are following stories separately, and using a siloed engagement plan… you are missing a huge opportunity,’ she warns.

Political and regulatory attention – like CMA investigations – can prolong a narrative’s lifecycle significantly, and land them in unexpected sectors. Reporting around the RAAC crisis, for example, received more coverage in Regional outlets than in the expected Construction & Property sector. The story of surge pricing received surprisingly little coverage in law-focused outlets, despite questions from online audiences about its legality.

How stories spread across media channels

For agencies, mapping stakeholders is a solid starting point, but so too is being prepared for a story to be picked up by actors with their own agendas.

When a story becomes politicised, agencies must be ready to:

– Correct misinformation at pace and offer good data.
– Engage directly with the media and political influencers involved.
– Motivate third-party stakeholder voices to add credibility and balance.

3. Find the connectors to break through the echo chamber

Despite all the interconnected platforms that make up the modern media landscape, it can still become severely siloed.

Coverage of surge pricing provides a clear example of this – broadsheets focused on issues around labour and fairness, alongside regulatory and market implications, while tabloids centred instead on drawbacks for the general public, with the price of concert tickets a recurring element.

Audiences for each largely stayed in their own echo chambers and weren’t exposed to diverse and different takes on the issue.

The value agencies can bring is bridging such silos by identifying the connectors. For the story of surge pricing, these are national broadcasters (which provide a shared space), specific interest publications (like LADBible or Sky Sports, that reach audiences across class lines), and influencers/experts (projecting a story across very different groups – Martin Lewis is just one example).

These connectors are a vital part of a modern media relations strategy, providing opportunities to break a story out of a single, self-reinforcing narrative.

4. Master the Two-Track Story

One of the curious parts of media fragmentation is how a single topic can spread in distinct ways that never intersect. AI for Heart Health coverage from the first half of 2025 did exactly this:

Track 1: The technical, medical story. This lived in academic or medical publications, and among niche communities and forums online. It reached a limited, but highly engaged, group of professionals, academics, and autodidacts.

Track 2: The mainstream story. When a specific angle of ‘smart pyjamas’ crossed over, it appeared in outlets including Daily Mail and The Mirror, but skipped spaces that ordinarily play host to more technical discussions.

Monitoring niche publications and social spaces to understand which stories have the capacity to break through into the mainstream is vital for agencies working with a variety of clients.

5. Ditch ‘Social First’

Still pitching ‘social first’ strategies? You could already be falling behind.

As Sean Allen-Moy, Head of Media Relations Strategy at Burson, puts it:

Sean Allen-Moy quote on media fragmentation

‘The concept of a ‘social first’ strategy is outdated. The reality is “social everywhere, always”.’

Tracking coverage of the zero hour contract ban in the UK bears this out. While the story was driven by personal experiences and work advocacy shared on social platforms, this fueled broadcast segments and column inches, which are always in need of case studies. Forget traditional media at your peril.

Monitoring and understanding the interplay between traditional coverage, social sharing, and forum-based discussion is a must – agencies must identify where audiences consume content and meet them there.

Andre Labadie quote

‘It’s endlessly fascinating how stories evolve, but it presents a real challenge for brands to fuel the fire – or put it out in some cases – across so many, constantly changing platforms and algorithms,’ says Brands2Life Exec Chair, Business & Technology André Labadie.

‘Using (increasingly AI-enhanced) listening and analytics tools to identify emerging trends through social is key so you can influence the narrative in its infancy. This is really changing how brands can take control of issues early and predict how they’re likely to evolve.

‘What definitely hasn’t changed is the need to add something new to the story, stay close to the media to develop new angles at the right time, and then use all the relevant platforms to amplify it.’

6. Follow the new PR playbook

This fragmented landscape demands a fluid strategy. As Amy Chappell, Head of Insights at Vuelio, puts it, a story is ‘no longer a fixed communication, but a fluid journey shaped by who picks it up and how it is retold’.

The agency playbook must be built on adaptability:

Think Ecosystem, Not Endpoint: Stop treating media coverage as the finish line. Instead, build responsive strategies that anticipate how stories will evolve across platforms.

Reframe Monitoring as Navigation: Tracking coverage isn’t about counting clips. It’s about understanding how narratives are reframed to know exactly when to step in, clarify, or amplify.

Embed Adaptability: Build flexibility into campaigns. This means having spokespeople and expert commentators ready to engage quickly to retain a degree of control in unpredictable times.

For agencies willing to embrace this complexity, the opportunities are immense. Moving from linear pitching to dynamic navigation can prove the indispensable value of agency support to clients and prospects.

Want more on navigating this new landscape? Check out the full story in Vuelio’s latest report ‘How news travels in today’s fragmented media environment’.

AMEC Silver win Vuelio Insights and Marie Curie

AMEC Awards 2025: Vuelio wins alongside Marie Curie

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The Vuelio Insights team are proud to have been awarded Silver at the AMEC Awards 2025 in the Step Change Award category for best improvement of a measurement journey, recognising our work with end of life charity Marie Curie.

Last night’s AMEC Awards 2025 was its 23rd year of celebrating excellence across the comms and measurement industry, spotlighting the campaigns, teams, and ideas redefining communication measurement across the world.

To be recognised for this collaboration with Marie Curie on such an important project is something we’re very grateful for as a team. With the initial objective of demonstrating the value of PR to senior stakeholders, the Vuelio Insights team worked with Marie Curie to shift public perceptions around difficult subjects like death, dying, and palliative care through high-quality media coverage, securing key messaging in target audience media.

The introduction of simple yet strategic reporting at board-level, as well as new methodologies, put in place frameworks to guide planning, support behavioural change, and elevate performance conversations going forward.

From never missing a story, to evaluating contribution, we’re glad to see this step change have real impact for Marie Curie, and those it works to support.

‘We’re really pleased to be recognised by AMEC in the Step Change Award category – the collaboration between Vuelio and Marie Curie to create this new framework has made meaningful change across the organisation, which is so rewarding to see and be a part of.’

– Amy Chappell, Head of Insights, Vuelio

‘We’ve always known the importance of the stories we tell, but this framework has helped us articulate the value of our work in a much clearer and more meaningful way. It’s given our team the language and tools to evaluate what good looks like – not just in terms of media volume, but in the quality, relevance and resonance of the coverage we’re securing.

‘It’s helped us build confidence across the organisation. We’re now able to show how communications supports our wider mission, and report that narrative credibly at every level of the charity.’

– Marie Curie comms team

AMEC said: ‘This journey showcases the power of compassionate insight, proving that smart evaluation can amplify purpose-led communication with clarity and empathy’.

Agency resilience in the age of AI

How to build agency resilience in the age of AI

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With the challenges of lower budgets, smaller teams, and extra crunches on clients, AI has been embraced by many across the PR industry as a potential cure-all. But with the very welcome efficiencies and shortcuts has come new challenges. What becomes of PR when content can be generated, and outreach and measurement automated?

Its vital function as moral guide; educator; builder and protector of reputation and knowledge. Read on for advice and insight on centring strategy and thought leadership while making the most of what AI brings to the table.

Steer AI in the right direction…

‘We need to remember that AI is a new tool that still requires human operation to be used successfully, creatively and ethically, so focusing on developing this expertise is key for PR teams moving forward,’ says Sheridan Okey, head of PR at Tribera.

‘PR teams should double down on deep storytelling and reputation management – areas where nuance, empathy, and emotional intelligence matter most. AI can generate words, but it cannot replicate the instinct to sense when a message will resonate or when it will backfire. This is where the industry’s energy should be concentrated: blending the efficiency of AI with the irreplaceable judgement of experienced professionals.’

Add value for journalists

The media is also battling with the pros and cons of artificial intelligence. What they don’t want? Servings of slop, says James Brockbank, managing director and founder at Digitaloft:

‘With AI, anyone can create content on anything they know nothing about, in seconds. And this means that, all of a sudden, too many journalists are finding themselves bombarded with ‘consensus’ comments from PRs who wrote them using AI.

‘That’s not adding value. A journalist could go and do that themselves if they wanted.

‘It’s more important than ever to focus on speaking with subject matter experts (who have genuine experience and expertise in the topic) to offer journalists value-adding comments, insights, and information to take their articles to the next level.

‘It sounds simple, but in a world where too many jump straight to ChatGPT, we’re losing the fact that genuine experts must be at the heart of everything we do.’

Colin Hallmark, founder and lead consultant at 3:nine Communications, also advocates for original case studies and expert comment:

‘There’s already a narrative emerging in the media around the proliferation of bland, generic soundbites via AI. Look no further than the recent controversy in the House of Commons, where MPs were criticised for using it in their speeches.

‘Journalists want credible, authentic voices and original commentary around busy news cycles – the growth of Substack and newsletters is proof of that . In media terms, it feels like we’re entering the age of the specialist. As more people use them as search engines, LLMs themselves are starting to rely heavily on contextual trust and authority drawn from a variety of third-party content, particularly in specialist and industry titles.

‘There’s a big role for PR professionals to work closely with clients to think creatively about how they can bring their expertise and frontline experience to these audiences.’

Continue to connect with people

‘AI will quickly become a delivery service to many brands and businesses,’ acknowledges Georgie Upton, managing director, Wild Card Public Relations.

‘But for us, AI is not the answer to people and brands living life in full colour; it lacks the deep understanding of human beings, the subtlety of connections, and nuances of knowing people – that quick glance, that inner-thought. Business thrives through people connections.

‘It is using AI in a combined approach that allows the survival of human-to-human businesses.’

Sarah Lloyd, podcaster and founder of ISPR, agrees with the importance of face-to-face, in-person, interactions:

‘The industry itself should focus on the human connection. Actually meeting with real people, and creating real relationships through sharing stories. In the age of automation and bringing it all online, we have lost the skill set that had us all working in PR in the first place.

‘AI can complement it – but can never replace it.

‘The value that individuals bring to the table for clients is relationship. Relationship with them, with the press and with agency staff. PR agencies are hired on results AND ALSO chemistry. Results and process is possible via AI, but chemistry is the soft skills that humans require so they can trust the team and agency who is representing them. People buy people at the end of the day.’

Add empathy back into the equation

‘The ability to connect with empathy, is what sets us apart,’ believes Anthony Cooper, company director, Clarient Global Limited.

‘Humans respond emotionally to ideas and events, and it is this ability that allows PR professionals to deliver maximum impact. Large language models can generate content, but they cannot recognise or interpret emotional currents in the way people can. To deliver lasting value, agencies should lean into their biggest assets, which are their people, while embracing AI as a tool that frees us to focus on what we do best.’

Step into the strategist role

‘If your relationship with clients is transactional and more reporting and press office-based, it will be diluted by AI,’ warns Laura Lear, managing director, AMBITIOUS.

‘PR teams will therefore need to be laser-focused on value and strategic consultancy. Our value lies in strategy and clarity, cutting through noise and challenging inaccuracies, and shaping insights and guidance that is tailored for each client.’

Natalie Sutton, tech comms board advisor, agrees:

‘We need to shift from being content factories to being strategic architects. The future belongs to agencies that can navigate complex stakeholder dynamics, predict reputational ripples, and craft nuanced positioning that resonates with human emotion, not just algorithms.

‘Stop competing with machines on their turf. Double down on what makes us irreplaceably human: cultural intuition, ethical judgement, and the ability to build genuine trust. AI can write a press release, but it can’t look a CEO in the eye and tell them their strategy is fundamentally flawed.’

Ask the questions LLMs won’t

‘Right now, we need to demonstrate our value and our worth,’ says Amy Dawson, owner of Gatekeeper Communications.

‘We are the ones who can respectfully challenge and push back, being the voice to remind our clients, “Is this the right thing to do?” or “What could be the fallout from this?” or “How can we change this conversation?” or “Could this quick win impact our long-term reputation?” An AI tool will only ever do what the prompt is asking it to do, so our value has to show that we are taking the right steps to build trust and authority, and that we are contributing towards positive behaviours.’

Echo chambers can be an unfortunate consequence of an over-reliance on LLMs, warns Marco Fiori, MD of Bamboo PR:

‘Fewer companies are looking over the horizon and considering the future impact of their public communication now. This risk is intensified by AI.

‘PRs already play a critical role in setting nuanced positioning, which will become even more sought-after in the coming years.’

Become brand guardians

‘If PR teams aren’t helping brands stand out if they lean on AI simply to churn out content,’ says David Clare, Head of Fusion, Fire on the Hill.

‘PR professionals need to reframe their perspective on AI. It isn’t just a productivity tool; it’s an ecosystem PR can actively influence to help brands tell their story.

‘Generative AI Engine Optimisation (GEO) is ripe for the picking for PRs. LLMs cite coverage, analyst reports, and community content – all areas our industry excels in. But to marry our traditional expertise with the new world of AI demands rigour, digital literacy, and ongoing analysis.

‘PR has always promised to build authority and trust. Today, delivering on that promise means moving beyond clever branding to evidence-based results that genuinely shift visibility and credibility for clients. The AI opportunity is not a productivity boost, it is our ability to create meaningful content that influences AI and sees LLMs do the brand storytelling for us.’

Rebuild your team’s skillset

Karen Idorn, digital PR director at SEOMG!, sees a need for some serious upskilling across the industry to make the most of these new opportunities opened up by the adoption of AI:

‘PR has always been about more than coverage. It’s about guiding organisations through complex, often sensitive conversations. As society becomes more polarised and every brand decision is scrutinised, our role as trusted advisors is more valuable than ever.

‘To really embrace this, PR teams need to invest in deeper industry knowledge, ethical training, and the confidence to challenge clients when necessary. It’s about moving from being just storytellers to being strategic partners who help organisations do the right thing, not just say the right thing.’

Be the voice of reason

How can agencies remain resilient in the age of AI?

‘The role of PR professionals will remain in the capacity of appreciated advisors, says Stephanie Mullins-Wiles, COO of BlueSky Education.

‘Provide moral guidance and be a voice of reason in a world increasingly impacted by AI.’

For Chris Norton, founder and managing director at Prohibition PR, PR remains vital – and should be at the top of the table:

‘The real opportunity for PR is to be seen as a trusted advisor at board level. We should be helping clients make not just communications decisions, but reputational ones: what they stand for, how they act, even where they draw the line ethically. Then, we devise a plan for how that is communicated to the world.

‘That’s a big responsibility, but it’s also what makes the role so valuable. To get there, agencies need to invest in their people – teaching younger professionals to think critically, speak with confidence, and not just ‘do PR’ but advise with authority to ultimately become consultants.

‘It’s this shift that will make our industry more resilient, ensure we’re adapting alongside AI, and that will future-proof the value of agencies.’

For how Vuelio can help agencies with their work, check out our Media Database, Media Monitoring, and Insights solutions.

Media fragmentation featured image

How news travels in today’s fragmented media environment ​

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The journey of a news story is no longer a straight line. The traditional, top-down method of disseminating information has been replaced by a complex, unpredictable, and multi-platform media environment.

For PR, communications, and public affairs professionals, this ecosystem presents a fragmented map with no clearly marked course, creating both significant risk and incredible opportunity.

How does a story find its audience today? How can you anticipate the unexpected directions a narrative might take, and what determines whether a story is shared widely or becomes trapped in a silo?

Media fragmentation graph

Our latest report ‘How news travels in today’s fragmented media environment’ provides a playbook for navigating the modern media maze. By tracking five distinct UK news stories from the first half of 2025 using Vuelio Media and Political Monitoring, we deconstruct their lifecycles to offer insights for professionals across the comms industry.

Inside the report, you’ll discover:

– How to anticipate the potential journey a story or campaign will take through today’s media landscape.
– Which strategies work for cutting through the noise of the 24/7 news cycle.
– Why stakeholder mapping is more important than ever for finding and communicating with the right audiences.

Why comms can't ignore politics

The impact of regulation on reputation: Why comms teams can’t ignore politics

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The Online Safety Bill, the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act, upcoming HFSS legislation changes, and Net Zero targets – did you factor these legislation updates into comms strategies for your business, and clients?

As made clear by the impacts of these regulations on the UK business landscape, staying out of politics is not a viable option for comms teams. Being aware of what’s happening in Westminster isn’t just a bonus skill – it’s a core competency that’s essential for risk management, opportunity spotting, and strategic counsel.

For practical advice for staying ahead in these politically-charged times, check out this round-up of advice from those in the industry successfully weaving political know-how into their brand and client strategies.

How politics permeates PR

Politics influences and intersects with every aspect of our daily lives, and this is no different for organisations.

Kerry Parkin, founder of the Remarkables, believes the issue is two-fold for comms:

‘1) Politics drives the agenda. The geopolitical world is moving faster than ever, often dictating the speed and direction of media and stakeholder conversations. Take tariffs as an example: a major political decision, well signposted in advance, can suddenly make or break something as straightforward as a tequila launch. If your product, business or brand is touched by political or geopolitical events, it must be factored into your mindset, planned for, and executed around, even through, the disruption.

2) Timing is everything. If you are pitching stories on the very day a budget lands, you can kiss goodbye to any meaningful coverage. Without political awareness, teams risk wasting opportunities and undermining credibility by being out of sync with the national conversation.’

In fact, a lack of political know-how can be poison for public relations, as Anton Greindl, director, public affairs, at the Tilton Consultancy explains:

‘Without a working grasp of the political agenda, agencies can drift away from their clients’ real priorities. If you don’t track policy and regulation, you mistime launches, miss stakeholder expectations, and risk using messages that are about to become politically toxic or legally constrained.

‘You also lose earned opportunities, such as select committee calls for evidence, regulator consultations, media windows, because you’re reacting after the fact. Policy literacy is the difference between PR being a noticeboard and PR being a strategic lever for revenue, risk, and reputation.’

Reputation could be the first casualty of a lack of awareness:

‘Without political awareness of the now and what’s upcoming, PR teams risk aligning their clients with narratives that are outdated, or even damaging,’ says Claire Crompton, commercial director at TAL Agency.

‘Politically and socially, society evolves daily – the political sphere is continuously shifting. Managing a brand must be timely in the wider context of society, without anticipating what’s ahead, PR teams are essentially navigating blindfolded.’

The role of political monitoring

While it’s impossible to be present for every PMQs, there are tools to help you keep on top of what’s happening in politics.

Laura Moss, managing partner, Parisi explains what political monitoring can do:

‘A good example of monitoring in practice came when we picked up on emerging Home Office policy proposals to ban critical national infrastructure (CNI) owners and operators from making ransomware payments.

‘We immediately flagged this to a client, the cybersecurity specialist team at a global law firm, and worked with them to provide rapid legal and policy analysis. Within hours, we were able to take their expert commentary to targeted media outlets, ensuring they were among the first voices shaping the debate. This not only positioned the client as a go-to authority on ransomware policy but also strengthened their relationships with journalists covering cyber and national security.’

Monitoring can provide the warning signs for potential crises on the horizon, believes Kerry:

‘It allows PR teams to anticipate rather than react. I saw this first-hand during my time at Costa, when Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall launched his campaign against paper cups. At the time, we treated it as purely a media issue. What we did not realise was that the subject had been raised at Prime Minister’s Questions a month earlier.

‘Political monitoring would have flagged that in advance and given us the chance to prepare the business and the narrative more effectively.’

Another example with huge ramifications for comms and wider industries – the uncertainty around TikTok’s continuing availability in the United States earlier this year:
‘In one fell swoop, this would have disenfranchised millions of young Americans from a channel that they could identify with, and would have cost the platform and its advertising partners, and brands that rely on it, millions in revenue,’ explains Yasper founder Julian Pearce.

‘Businesses from all corners need to be aware of the threats, and the potential fragility of their relationships.’

Political awareness is needed globally, nationally, but also locally, adds Katie Nelson, director and head of construction at Cartwright:

‘Recent months and years demonstrate this perfectly with a power change in Number 10, new housing targets and national infrastructure strategies, and changing cabinets. By being tapped into that political space, we’re able to work with clients on how best to navigate changes from a communications perspective – which as PR pros, we know the role comms has to play.’

Moving from passive observation to proactive strategy

What comms teams do with the information is what makes the difference – reacting to what’s happening in the political sphere, but also taking a proactive stance:

‘On its own, data is useful,’ says Laura. ‘But the real value comes from PR consultants interpreting it and adding their knowledge and insights on the potential business impact, then advising clients on how they may or may not wish to respond. By turning monitoring into actionable insight, PR teams can help clients shape communications strategies and identify opportunities for engagement with policymakers or industry bodies.’

Anton agrees:

‘Too many consultancies follow the same pre-packaged newsletters from a narrow set of public affairs – specific outlets, which limits scope and insight. While these are extremely useful in our day to day, every practitioner should skim the key national and international papers each morning, plus at least one business title, one sector trade and the relevant regulator feeds. Go to the source, such as government portals, consultations, committees and statistical releases, rather than relying solely on pre-focused summaries. And I believe we should close the loop weekly with a short, internal, client-specific briefing that covers what changed, why it matters, and the recommended actions.’

In summary, ignore what’s happening in Parliament at your peril…

Your stakeholders will care, so should you, says Jan Christoph Bohnerth, CEO of Life Size.

‘Communications teams can and should go beyond simply tracking when a new bill or regulation is introduced. It’s now also about anticipating how different stakeholders are likely to move, and communications has an important role to play in influencing and shaping public discourse. Done well, this gives PR teams the intelligence to stay ahead, guide strategy and achieve the best possible outcomes for their clients or organisations.’

‘Those that fall short tend to be the ones cutting back in political and communications engagement,’ warns Kerry.

‘In today’s environment, that is short sighted. Now is the time to be investing in these capabilities, not retreating from them, because the political and media landscape is only becoming more complex and uncertain.’

‘The takeaway for PR is simple,’ adds Anton. ‘When politics moves, lead with substance, consistency and implementation detail.

‘Treat policy milestones like a content calendar, make your spokespeople useful to the debate, and ensure every message is anchored to actions the organisation is taking next.’

Tap into what’s happening in politics with Vuelio Political Monitoring and our Political Database. Want help with stakeholder management? Check out Vuelio Stakeholder Relationship Management. 

Future of Media Technology Conference 2025

How the UK media are making use of technology to bring audiences back

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The evolution of AI has forced the comms industry to completely rethink its role in the media ecosystem, and journalism is facing the same conundrum.

For the challenges being faced in the media industry now, check out insight shared at this year’s Future of Media Technology Conference from Press Gazette, featuring speakers from PA Media, the Daily Mail, The Times, PinkNews, Bauer Media, and more…

A big problem for brands: AI’s impact on GEO and SEO

Many speakers throughout the conference referred to the devastating impact of LLMs on traffic previously picked up from Google Search. And Google was the focus of much consternation:

‘I’ve worked on the publisher side for about 20 years, before joining PA Media, and during that time, it was mostly seen that Google were the “good guys” among the frenemies that were out there, in the sense that our objectives were aligned,’ said Martin Ashplant, product development and operations director for PA Media.

‘Publishers wanted to get really good quality content out there. Google wanted really good quality content on the web, so that people came to the open web and didn’t go into closed systems. That’s clearly changed, and I think that’s been clearer and clearer over the last few years. And this isn’t just about AI. This is about how the Google interface has changed, and there is no longer that ability to rely on getting the click.’

Carly Steven, director of SEO and editorial e-commerce for the Daily Mail, explained the impact being seen at the brand:

‘There is obviously a huge period of disruption right now, massive changes related to AI overviews rolling out. Like a lot of publishers, we’re seeing the impact of that.

‘The reality is that when there are AI overviews for our keywords, the click-through rate goes down. I think we all know that nobody really clicks when there’s an AI overview present, and that impacts on traffic.

‘But, by the time an AI overview appears, that story has moved on and our readers aren’t searching for it anymore – its impacts are negligible. That doesn’t mean to say that it doesn’t matter. It absolutely does. But our brand is in a very fortunate position in that a significant portion of our traffic is direct, from branded searches. That makes us quite resilient in the face of these changes.’

Anna Sbuttoni, deputy head of digital for The Times and The Sunday Times, believes the early upheaval is finally settling down for publishers:

‘We have seen that Google Search referrals were fluctuating, but it is relatively steady right now.’

In fact, the benefits of SEO and GEO have been in flux for a while already, as Bauer Media’s Stuart Forrest, global audience director, explained:

‘Zero Click Search has been an issue for publishers for a long time. There was a website years ago called Celebrityheights.com, for example, that would tell you that Tom Cruise is five foot six. That site went out of business because you didn’t need to go there once Google would provide the answer. AI is just the next step of that.’

Caroline Fenner, chief revenue officer for PinkNews, agreed that this is just the latest step in a long-standing issue:

‘Everyone’s been reluctant to rely heavily on Google Search for a very long time now, because of the algorithm changes and how unreliable it’s been.

‘PinkNews is fortunate in that we get a lot of our traffic via socials. But, speaking to other publishers, it is a concern, and you need to look at other ways to generate traffic now. “Google zero” seems to be the new phrase being used. In case that happens, we’re constantly looking at new ways to drive traffic to our website. Likes, comments, shares, all sorts of stuff on social, the comments, dwell time, repeat users – we’re looking at ways to keep people within our ecosystem. That lends itself to WhatsApp groups, Facebook communities, and subreddits – it’s making sure there’s a safe space for the community to feel like they belong.’

Helping audiences find their community are platforms like Reddit:

‘Forums feed the algorithm in terms of SEO and AI results as well,’ said Tom Rolfe, director of publisher development at OpenWeb. ‘It’s going to be a great place for UGC [user generated content], but it’s not going to touch your content on site. It will be its own thing, almost like a subdomain for publishers. We’re really happy that forums like Reddit are being favored by Google and AI, because it’s providing an opportunity.’

For what else Google is ‘favouring’ these days, Daily Mail’s Carly asked for more transparency:

‘I think the biggest plea that we have to Google as publishers is to be able to see the data. We can’t track it properly, and we don’t get that information in our analytics tools. If we did, we could properly attribute the impact of AI on traffic. But right now that’s very, very difficult to see.’

Where in the ‘funnel’ can audiences be found now?

Where ‘top of funnel’ traffic – referrals from Google Search – has reduced drastically for many smaller publishers that won’t rack up ‘branded searches’ from audiences searching for the title or brand in question, Tom advocated a pivot to ‘mid-funnel’-focused strategies:

‘For a long time, publishers were very focused on “top of funnel” traffic – what we’d call ‘free traffic’. It’s a bit like a drug, you know, all this coming from nowhere. Now we’re having to shift that publisher mindset to ‘mid-funnel’ engagement. When the user hits the site, it’s figuring out what’s the value exchange for them? That’s something you can offer with community features – commenting, reaction tools, really focusing on keeping them there for as long as possible.’

The Times’ Anna spoke about their equivalent of the ‘mid-funnel’ – The Times app:

‘Commenting on our site is very much a subscriber privilege, and it’s being part of The Times’ community.’

Her fellow panelists admitted to reading the comments before the article when consuming news – a rising trend among wider audiences, too. In the same way PinkNews encourages community, The Times has grown this via their app – where commentary and feedback from readers is encouraged to continue engagement.

What can’t be replicated by AI?

Publishers are faced with the reality that much of their content can now be produced by AI, and potential readers are being directed to AI summaries instead of the content they’ve been trained on. Panelists spoke of the need to rethink priorities, and what journalists can do that AI can’t:

‘The Times has a 240-year history, and it’s something that we need to protect – the legacy and the authority that we have,’ said Anna.

‘It’s something that we talk about and enforce in the newsroom every day. When we’re talking about live coverage or story packages, we’re always thinking, what’s the exclusive? What have we got that’s original, that’s distinctively The Times that no one else has? How can we contribute to this conversation? How can people read, watch, or listen and understand what’s going on?

‘The next step for us is really putting our reporters at the core of what we do. How can we show our workings more, show that it is humans creating the content, and the hours, months, or years that can go into an investigation?

‘That’s something we’re exploring. Showing what we do as a way to bring people back, keep people in. For them to know that they can come to us’.

Martin at PA Media believes original content must in incentivised, for the good of publishers and LLMs: :

‘The worst case end point is we get to a place where there is no value in creating original content, because everything is being summarised. My call would be to invest in producing high quality journalism, original content, going out there and getting the stuff that isn’t yet there to be scraped. Because if you lose that, you lose the reason for people to go out and be creative.’

How the media is making use of data and metrics

Sheena Peirse, chief customer officer at Mediahuis Ireland, was firm on the importance of continual testing and improvement for publishers in the current landscape:

‘‘What you really see across the board – my team, the customer, subscriptions, the marketing team – is development, iterating. Test, learn, iterate. Use your data. Find out what works. Make it work. Move on.”

But which metrics can actually be trusted? David Goddard, SVP of business development, measurement and publisher solutions for DoubleVerify, highlighted the inherent issues with data-led strategies:

‘The problem with any metric is that they can be gamed. Thinking about attention, for example – is it engaged attention? Is it just a video playing at the corner of the screen? Is it somebody who’s actually watching the content? It’s really difficult to say for sure.’

Maintaining brand safety

Should alignment with ‘hard’ news be a big no-no for brands? No necessarily, believes Imogen Fox, global chief advertising officer for The Guardian:

‘We know that 96% of people read their news online in some form. So why on earth would you not want to put your brand near them? If you are – and I hate using this word – brave, you advertise next to the news. You do see good results.

‘People used to think that The Guardian is more famous for the advertising we don’t take than the advertising we do. It’s been our job as an ads team to say, actually, what we’re really good at is connecting brands with culture.’

But is the term ‘brand safety’ itself a blocker? David at DoubleVerify defined the issue in a different way:

‘I think the terms “brand safety” and “brand suitability” can be confused and intertwined. We can say in this room, news is 100% brand safe. There’s no brand safety issues with news. There are sensitivities to particular content, and publishers need to utilise tools to ensure that advertisers are avoiding the sensitive parts of news. There will be particular news subject matter that some brands will insist on avoiding. The rest of the news can be highly performant for advertisers.’

Should AI bots be blocked to ‘protect’ publishing?

Dan Rua, CEO of Admiral, The Visitor Relationship Management Company, believes AI bots should be blocked from training on content from publishers. He shared a clear message that the media industry should work together, using his experiences at Napster as an example:

‘AI is a scary disruption. But if navigated well, there’s opportunity. Copyright sets the guardrails of what is okay and what is not okay. Figuring out the value exchange that works for users is key. In the case of music copyright, there was an industry solidarity – music labels were on the same page of what needed to happen. They weren’t really bickering with each other about how to tackle it – ultimately, they got together and made a difference.

‘I think step one here is blocking the bots. Doesn’t mean in the future you might not find more creative ways to work in the whole ecosystem.’

Carly disagreed – referring to the Daily Mail’s collaboration with AI companies, and other publishers’ deals to allow AI training:

‘I don’t think it’s helpful to malign the bots, because if you do, that leads to a kind of arms race of evasion and detection, where publishers are constantly spending on protection, bots are constantly spending to improve evasion, and actually, the only people who win that scenario are the tech companies.’

Martin at PA Media was also open to the possibilities AI could provide to publishing and big brands:

‘Despite the kind of negativity that we’ve been talking about today, I’m actually really bullish about AI – I think it presents a real opportunity.

‘We will start to see a premium placed on human-generated content as it becomes harder and harder to wade through “AI slop”. Having humans involved will become the big point of difference.’

Director of FT Strategies Adriana Whiteley offered practical advice to all content creators seeking audiences now:

‘Focus on niche content that directly meets your user needs, and do that while you have an audience. After you’ve lost your audience, it’s going to be much harder to take it back. We have a window of opportunity to work on those areas and understand what people want. Create a specific product. Make the products richer – increase that stickiness in what you offer.’

For more on how the media industry is connecting with audiences now, check out insight shared during our Seeking Audiences: Journalism in the Platform Era event with speakers from BBC News, ITV, LSE, and more.

How to get press coverage in September 2025

Christmas content, money issues and fitness fanatics: How to get UK press coverage in September

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Wondering how you can get expert comment into the press in September? With the kids heading back to school and a new season beginning, there is plenty of new topics and issues for journalists to cover. Find out below what they have been looking for in August from requests sent via the ResponseSource Journalist Enquiry Service and how this will impact what they are looking for this month and beyond.

Holidays are coming

Whether you’re a fan of Christmas or not, journalists are already looking to get ahead with their gift guides. In July, ‘Christmas’ appeared in just over 2% of enquiries and this figure more than doubled to just under 7% of requests in August.

What are journalists writing about in September?

It’s not all been gift guide requests, though. There have been enquiries for festive/winter feature ideas and celeb interviews, historic houses decorated for Christmas, and winter books. Journalists at The Telegraph, The Independent, House Beautiful, and Bella all sent requests in August.

Going forward? September is likely to see the amount of Christmas requests double again. Last year, 14% of enquiries in September were for Christmas, with about 9% for gift guide products and 4% for advent calendars. Be prepared with samples to send out for review, and you could be featured in the national press.

Money issues a concern again

Both energy bills and food prices are set to rise over Autumn and Winter meaning that money concerns are once again high on the news agenda. This was seen on the Journalist Enquiry Service in August, with just over 3% of the total requests featuring ‘money’.

Outlets such as Raconteur, Sifted, Saga Money, Money Marketing, and The Sunday Times all sent enquiries around this topic last month. Many of these were looking for case studies, with asks for single people to chat about managing finances, a business owner who is worried about business rates, and for someone who has inherited a decent amount of cash because of IHT reasons.

Which journalists are using ResponseSource for their Sept 2025 features?

Going forward? Journalists are likely to be writing advice pieces over the coming weeks and months about how people can save money during Autumn/Winter. We will see a lot of requests for money and personal finance experts. Plus, the Autumn Budget isn’t too far away, so journalists will need experts to explain any changes that will affect household budgets, and possibly case studies of people that will be impacted.

Fitness in fashion

The peak time for fitness is usually in early January, which we saw earlier this year with nearly 4% of requests containing the word ‘fitness’. However, we have seen another spike in August, with 2.5% of enquiries looking to cover this topic.

Outlets such as Men’s Fitness, Fabulous, The London Standard, and Cosmopolitan all sent requests last month. The majority were looking for fitness experts to share their advice and opinions but we also had enquiries looking for fitness bootcamps, home gym equipment, and fitness etiquette.

What journalists are asking for in September 2025

Going forward? National Fitness Day is coming up on 24 September, so we are likely to see more requests for experts and information on different exercises and classes that people can take up to get fit. Have comments ready to send out and you could get featured in a consumer magazine.

Other opportunities for PRs in September and beyond

Party conference season is nearly upon us and journalists have been looking to get ahead of this with 2.5% of requests containing ‘government’ and 1% for ‘Labour’. Enquiries are likely to focus on getting expert opinion on new policy announcements, and speeches, and conventions from the major party conferences. You can also keep up with the developments from the party conferences by subscribing to our newsletter.

Peak holiday season may now have passed but the media are already looking to get ahead and cover Autumn and Winter travel ideas and holidays. ‘Travel’ appeared in 5% of the total enquiries in August with the majority looking for experts to share their tips and advice on places to go. This is likely to continue throughout September with journalists seeking information on half-term holiday suggestions.

Want to get the most out of the ResponseSource Journalist Enquiry Service? Check out this explainer.

Preparing for a cyber crisis

‘Cyber crisis is a completely different animal’: Advice on planning a cyber secure comms strategy

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‘The thing to remember: it’s not a normal crisis’ – that’s Joanne Gill’s advice for comms teams. And Joanne would know: her organisation Cyber Crisis Readiness & Response is geared towards helping comms teams who are faced with cyber security crises.

And in today’s climate, every comms team is at risk. Any organisation with an internet connection could be subject to a cyber attack, a data leak, or a deep fake of their c-suite in today’s climate of increased danger. According to Panorama report ‘Fighting Cyber Criminals’, there were an estimated 19,000 ransomware attacks on UK businesses in 2024, and that number is only set to grow.

‘You have to have a separate part of your crisis comms plan, a separate process, a separate mind map. Don’t fall back on your usual muscle memory, because it’s not going to work for you,’ adds Joanne, who equips organisations across the UK with the confidence to withstand and recover from the dangers of a cyberattack.

Read on for what to learn from recent crises that hit the headlines; practical steps for getting started on your plan; and where comms can get particularly complicated…

Lessons to learn from the 2025 summer of cyberattacks

‘All comms teams need to be prepared for something like this to happen to them, and other organisations in their sector. Identify stakeholders, have statements that are ready to go,’ advises Joanne.

Cyberattacks are on the rise

‘The key thing that’s different with a cyber crisis is, how do you actually distribute that? If all of your systems are down (for example, M&S had to revert to pen and paper), how do you distribute your statement to journalists?

‘There’s that added complication of having a distribution list that is not attached to a system which might go down. Ask yourself – do I know how I’m going to contact people? Where am I keeping that information? If I’ve got a crisis communication plan, do I have a paper copy of that? Do the people who are involved in that have a paper copy of it? And how are we going to communicate and actually do our jobs, get approvals for things that we put out when our systems are all down?’

Cyber crisis versus crisis

‘The additional element with a cyber crisis is that you need to be a good corporate citizen. With a cyber crisis, you’re not the sole victim. Your suppliers are potentially victims – it’s going to cost them money, one way or another.

‘All the usual things that you would do in a crisis need to be considered – how do we shore up the reputation of the company? How do we reassure people? How do we say sorry? But you also need to also look at how to be a good corporate citizen, preventing further harm to all of the people who are in your business ecosystem.

‘That is about communicating with CISOs (Chief Information Security Officers), telling them what the solution is to this problem, and how they can prevent contagion to their own systems. You’ve got a whole load of communication that has to happen before anybody even thinks about what to say to the media.

‘The media isn’t going to drive how a company recovers. That’s going to be how you deal with your stakeholders – the media is just a route to communicate with those stakeholders.

‘A cyber crisis is a different animal to other crises.’

Practical steps for planning your response

‘Ensure that you have those stakeholder distribution lists and that you’ve done some analysis in advance about who you need to communicate with, and what to do if all your systems are down.

‘Make sure that you’ve got all of the suppliers, all of your ecosystems, chief executive security officer details so that you can contact them, so your technical people can write to them. And that’s very different messaging to that of reassuring your customers.

‘It’s about segmenting, making sure that you’ve got that information available outside of your usual systems.’

CEO statements: Always a solid comms strategy?

‘As a comms team, you know whether your chief exec is somebody that you want to put forward – it’s what companies traditionally do for crisis comms. You do the media training, emphasing the need to be apologetic, to be empathetic.

‘But I don’t know… the other element with cyber issues is that the more content you have of your senior team in the public domain, the more opportunity there is for criminals to use AI deep fake tech. To do some social engineering, and then use that to get access to your systems. Nobody is going to argue with the CEO if they call a help desk in the middle of the night and say “reset my password”.’

Extra complications to consider

‘It’s so complicated because you’ve got things like GDPR, there are potential fines coming further down the line. Cyber crisis is a multi-layered, complicated thing.

‘Comms teams who come into this thinking that it’s going to be like a regular crisis will come unstuck very quickly.’

For more on planning your strategy, watch Vuelio’s webinar ‘Cyberattack Crisis Comms’, or read our overview of the key points covered here.

Media monitoring what makes Vuelio different

Media monitoring platforms for PR and comms – what makes Vuelio different?

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With a number of media monitoring platforms boasting AI-optimised integration and constant streams of real-time coverage, how can you tell which one will actually meet the practical needs of your team on a day-to-day basis?

For those in PR, comms, public affairs, politics, or marketing, here’s how the Vuelio platform provides straightforward support with media outreach, brand building, scanning (and planning) for potential trouble, stakeholder management, and much more.

1) A fully integrated communication suite

With no need to click out of the platform, Vuelio offers the ability to access your news on journalist and outlet profiles, alongside their wider coverage. Track your company mentions, coverage about competitors, your industry, or the wider trends you’re watching.

You can also click straight through to contact profiles from your news records to interrogate the related coverage, quickly. Vuelio’s Media Database is fully integrated with its monitoring solutions, meaning it’s really simple to create targeted lists based on news coverage.

2) Automatically link coverage to your press releases

Leverage Vuelio’s ability to link coverage directly to your releases, making it simple to see which of them have been most successful when it comes to engaging your stakeholders – whether it be the press, the public, or high-profile people and organisations in your industry. Uncover who has opened them (with specific time and date stamps), and where your story has shaped coverage and conversation.

3) Create target media lists to reach the right audience

With Vuelio’s Media Database, not only can you create bespoke target media lists, you can also overlay them onto dashboards to gauge your share-of-voice versus that of your competitors’ within your key publications.

Vuelio empowers you to proactively measure the impact that you’re having with key publications, allowing you to replicate what’s working, or make adjustments before your next release; leveraging insights based on what is working within key target media.

4) Make use of automatic unlimited tagging in-platform

Vuelio will surface bespoke tags within your coverage, ensuring you’re able to identify and understand the narrative and related themes across your coverage.
These tags will be current and tailored to your company and campaigns – comprising brands, products, categories, spokespeople, issues, topics, and much more.

5) Unlimited bespoke analytics

Uniquely, Vuelio offers the ability to analyse bespoke and filtered datasets. What this means in practice: filtering down by keyword or by any of our flexible filters (Date, Reach, Outlet, Target Media List, Tags, Competitors, for example) and gaining insight on what matters most, all in real-time.

6) Going beyond traditional media

Vuelio’s Media Database includes voices from across the widening media landscape – not just newspapers, magazines, and trade titles, or broadcasters in television and radio. It also includes podcasters, TikTokers, and more – influencers across social platforms and new media that can help you connect with audiences outside of ‘traditional’ media.

With news avoidance on the up, audiences are getting their information and entertainment from a wide variety of sources, which Vuelio monitors, and offers a way in to.

7) AMEC-accredited media insights

The Vuelio Insights team have experience and deep knowledge of the industries they work with, and conduct in-depth research to highlight media opportunities, potential risks, and performance trends via bespoke and easily-digested reports.

Featuring clear analysis, tailored recommendations, and actionable next steps, these reports are human-curated – not AI generated – ensuring unparalleled levels of nuance and personalised contextualisation. They are also delivered on a basis that works for you and your team – not spat out from the platform, but regularly scheduled, or delivered on a campaign or ad-hoc basis.

8) Hands-on support from the Vuelio team

From day one of using the Vuelio platform, whether mixing a number of services from its fully-integrated suite or just one of our solutions, you’ll receive dedicated support from both a Customer Success and an Account Manager, ensuring smooth setup, and real-time training from our wider expert team.

Quick turnaround support is available from your dedicated Account Manager, who is on hand to help you. Regularly upskilled with training, Vuelio’s in-house team are embedded within specific sectors to build a fluency and depth of knowledge. This allows the team to not only provide generalised platform knowledge, but also to answer the questions you care most about. Not sure how to put a boolean string together, or how to utilise an LLM to brainstorm a campaign email? The Vuelio team, as well as its platform, is ready to help.

Find out more about Vuelio Media Monitoring here. 

Why email is an effective part of comms strategy

Why PRs should be making the most of email in an AI-driven world

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Is email outreach as outdated as the 90s-era posted PR press mailer? With the comms industry rushing to integrate AI tools into their tech stack, the email blast could be seen as just another tactic of PR’s past. But think again…

‘At the start of my career fax and phone were the only way of reaching journalists,’ says Anne Cantelo, founder and managing director of Onyx Media and Communications Ltd.

‘Younger generations of PR hate the phone even more than the generations before them, and most journalists seem to feel the same. At the same time, journalists have confessed to me that they have thousands of unopened emails in their inboxes…’

Phone calls are out, and unread emails are piling up – the rush to integrate AI across the industry could signal that electronic mail will go the way of its franked counterpart. But the lessening of 1-2-1 engagement that comes with AI automation makes email even more valuable – especially when it’s powered-up by artificial intelligence.

Here is advice from comms professionals already evolving their email strategies to boost engagement.

1. Cutting through with quality content

Stakeholders are overwhelmed by constant messaging even outside of their inbox – how can you catch their eye?

‘The rise of AI presents both a challenge and an opportunity,’ says Liz Churchman, deputy managing director at B2B tech PR agency EC-PR.

‘With inbox filtering becoming more intelligent, relevance is no longer optional; it’s critical. Yet, AI also empowers us to create what I call a ‘one-to-one feel as one-to-many scale.’ Using tools like ChatGPT, we build custom GPTs aligned to buyer personas, underpinned by deep audience insight; motivations, fears, frustrations, so that our emails feel crafted with intent, not churned by automation.

‘Clean, segmented lists and emotionally intelligent messaging make the difference between delete and engage.’

Formatting is also important – short and relevant copy, interactive elements including video embeds and html features, and making sure it’s mobile-first for people on the go, or trapped in long meetings without access to their laptop…

2. Email as part of a wider strategy

‘Comms pros need to be where the audience is and adapt our methods and routes to communication,’ says Leopard Co CEO and co-founder Rachel Roberts, whose team utilises email as just one way to communicate with stakeholders.

‘It’s been a while since I faxed through a press release but meanwhile, we have embraced new routes to engage with audiences including WhatsApp messages, social media DMs, programmatic emails, remarketing and calling campaigns.’

Email is no longer in a silo, and should be used in conjunction with private messaging platforms like WhatsApp, Slack, and Discord; microsites and press rooms; personalised landing pages for campaigns; and follow-ups after in-person networking.

Sycamore Communications’ PR manager Danielle Windecker-Hilton advocates for email as a ‘connecting’ tool:

‘We treat email as a connector, driving recipients to deeper content or prompting direct engagement with the people and brands we represent. It supports our clients’ goals and can be a good initial touchpoint with journalists and publications.’

‘Attending to emails can be viewed by some as a bit of a negative, burdensome chore,’ admits Rachel. ‘Indeed, we have a client who only wants to communicate with us on WhatsApp.

‘But with email carrying weight from a legal perspective – eyeballs are there, and so is the marketing opportunity.’

Just remember to be careful…

‘Automation and AI does make email marketing more accessible, but it means more people with less expertise can be spamming people,’ warns Rachel. ‘There is no quicker way to break a brand than to spam and annoy your customers. Press send with care.’

3. Personalisation

Does bringing artificial intelligence into email strategy make the messaging impersonal and robotic? Used properly, AI can actually bring personalisation back into your email strategy.

‘AI helps us go beyond just inserting someone’s name,’ shares Ed Hopkins, managing director of Ed Hopkins PR.

‘AI can tailor emails based on behaviour, preferences, or timing. This leads to more relevant content and stronger engagement. People are more likely to respond when they feel a message is meant for them.’

4. Optimisation

Writing eye-catching subject lines that are just the right length; segmenting your contact lists, selecting the right sending times; and predicting the levels of engagement – AI can help with all this.

But before you get stuck into prompting on ChatGPT or Gemini, here is some extra help from Riley Gardiner, founder of No Strings Public Relations:

‘To stand out in busy inboxes you’ll need to focus on concise, relevant subject lines and genuine, value-driven content. Avoiding generic language and adding a human touch helps cut through noise.

‘Email offers a direct, personal channel for stakeholder communication that social or mass media can’t replicate. It supports ongoing dialogue, builds trust, and allows for nuanced messaging in ways that other tactics struggle to match.’

5. Complying with regulation, not dicing with dodgy data

GDPR, CCPA, and incoming abbreviated regulations for the use of data means that opt-in emails are non-negotiable for comms professionals.

Your media database of choice can help with this (like the Vuelio Media Database, for example…) and so can AI.

‘AI can be a great help in staying GDPR-compliant by automating consent management and ensuring data is handled correctly, reducing human error,’ says Riley Gardiner.

Just make sure your lists are maintained and kept up-to-date…

‘AI can help identify potential compliance risks, streamline workflows, and ensure that personalisation is based on compliant, permissioned data,’ says Gerard Boon, Financial Times contributor and managing director of Boon Brokers.

‘But it’s important to remember that AI is only as effective as the framework it is given. Human oversight must remain a non-negotiable part of the process – experts in their field need to be vigilant and ready to amend, review, or flag potential issues as they arise.’

6. Making more of metrics

Open rates are less reliable with the increased use of email protection and privacy tools, but there are other metrics to make the most of – including clicks, replies, and conversions. Some tools also offer bespoke insights, like time spent reading an email. Additionally, it’s important to keep an eye on factors like send times to optimise delivery.

‘While open rates still provide some value, I think it’s important to remember the fundamental principles behind comms is to establish a relationship and communication,’ says Gerard.

‘Focusing on click-through rates (CTR), time spent on linked content, and conversion actions (such as booking a call or completing a contact form) are actually better measuring metrics to establish how close your branding and messaging is with your specific target audience.

‘Reply rates and engagement with follow-up emails are now more important than ever, putting in place a stronger bond of genuine interest and intent.’

7. Human to human connection

Journalist and stakeholder inboxes fill up with generic pitches throughout the day. Effective email strategy in comparison goes further, focusing on relationship building rather than blasting out a message.

‘Email still allows for direct, personal communication that can be tailored to your ideal client,’ says Sarah Lloyd, founder of ISPR.

‘I still believe that email can create a more intimate and focused experience, allowing for thoughtful and deeper conversations. Emails can be segmented and targeted, and you can track, document and enjoy focused interactions without the noise of social media.’

Email can be a personalised check-in with a client, an invitation to an upcoming event, or the sharing of a piece of content relevant to their industry. It should be a continuing conversation – not a series of non-sequitur statements littering an already busy inbox.

‘In today’s crowded inboxes, success comes from speaking to your audience’s problems, not your solutions,’ adds Liz Churchman.

‘If your subject line and first line don’t address what keeps your audience up at night, they’ll be gone in two seconds. Relevance, empathy and creativity must drive every word.’

Evergreen email

‘Email remains one of the most direct and controlled forms of communication,’ believes Gerard Boon.

‘Unlike social media or paid ads, it allows us to be incredibly specific on our outreach, tailoring a wide-variety of content for nuanced and context-rich messaging. There are no character limits as such and less platform restrictions.

‘While innovations in technology have boomed in recent years, there is a lot of focus on social media influencers, podcasts, and hyper attentive alternative platforms. While these all have a place under the umbrella of marketing, I think it is sometimes forgotten that emails offer that personalised edge with a familiar outreach – we’re all still connected to the online world.

‘For stakeholder engagement, this means we can maintain, build on, and direct to useful resources, with a strategy that continues to build an evergreen trust over time.’

Our own email expert, Pulsar Group head of global marketing campaigns Kirsti Kauronen says:

‘For us, email is one of the key channels to reach our audiences directly. With new AI tools emerging at a fast pace, we are able to deliver even more tailored comms with greater impact.

‘Many email providers now offer automatic summaries of emails, so it’s even more important to include strong subject lines and opening sentences that stand out in crowded inboxes.

‘And don’t forget to test your content regularly. It’s essential to optimise performance and ensure your key message comes across clearly.’

For help with your emails, and wider comms strategy, check out Vuelio’s Media Database, Stakeholder Relationship Management, and Media Monitoring solutions.

Featured image for cyberattack report

Retail cyberattacks & the UK press reaction

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What happens when brand reputation is threatened by malicious attacks from outside actors?

This is the situation currently being faced by UK retail brands following a number of global cyberattacks that have put customer information – and company loyalty – at risk. What can comms teams put in place to prepare for the possibility they’re next? 

Our latest report ‘Retail cyberattacks & the UK press reaction’ examines how impacted brands have communicated the data breaches to stakeholders, as well as the reception so far.  

Infographic for cyberattacks

Using data and insight from Vuelio Media Monitoring and the Journalist Enquiry Service, this report unpacks:

  • How the UK press have reported on cyberattacks and data breaches impacting household name retail brands.
  • What journalists and broadcasters covering the growing issue are requesting from PR and comms professionals for their reports and think pieces.
  • Why both proactive and reactive PR strategies are vital for organisations at risk of cyberthreats. 

 

Media trends for June

Cyber attacks, Father’s Day, and summer travel: How to get UK press coverage in June

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Interested in finding out what could catch a journalist’s eye in June? Hundreds of media professionals use the ResponseSource Journalist Enquiry Service each week to send requests for experts, information and more, giving us a good idea of what they will be looking for.

Read on to see the topics and keywords trending in May, and what this could mean for your media outreach this month.

AI and cyber hitting the headlines

‘AI’ has been a popular topic on the Journalist Enquiry Service for a while now, averaging about 3% of requests each month, but in May this was over 4%. It has been joined by ‘cyber’ which received over 2% of enquiries, divided fairly equally between requests around ‘cyber attacks’ and ‘cyber security’, in the wake of the recent cyber attacks on UK retailers.

Top themes for June 2025

Journalists from BBC News, The Guardian, IT Pro, New Statesman, and ITV News have all sent requests in the last month to cover one or both of these topics. These have included looking for a tech/software expert for advice for consumers on recent retailer cyber attacks and comments from CTOs and CIOs on how they are balancing AI innovation with security.

Going forward? With yet more retailers losing data to cyber attacks then journalists are likely to continue to need expert opinion on what companies can do to tackle this problem, as well as what the impact might be on consumers. While AI remains a constant topic of discussion in the media, regular enquiries ask for experts on this topic and case studies of how businesses are using the technology in their sector or workplace.

Father’s Day in focus

There are less than two weeks until Father’s Day now and journalists have been looking to get their content sorted early on, with over 2% of enquiries covering this topic. There has also been a 12% increase in the amount of requests compared to May last year.

The majority of the requests have been for gift guide products, including looking for gadgets, food items, luxury experiences, and presents for new dads. Enquiries came from outlets including Dadsnet, Forbes, and Good Homes.

What journalists are requesting for June 2025

Going forward? While there isn’t long to go, there is still likely to be a flurry of final requests for the best last-minute gifts to get dad. If you have products ready to review then you could get featured in a consumer outlet.

Peak season for travel

It’s probably unsurprising but the Travel category peaks in June – having done so in 2023 and 2024, too. It also performed well in May, increasing by 10% compared to April. ‘Travel’ as a keyword appeared in nearly 6% of the total enquiries last month, with ‘hotels’ and ‘outdoors’ in over 3% and ‘holidays’ just over 2.5%.

Requests varied – solo traveller hotels and venues; innovative products for a feature on summer travel trends; holiday money saving tips; and asks for people who have/or plan to quit the holiday let sector.

Going forward? Travel will continue to perform well as a category and a keyword for the next month or two with journalists needing a wide variety of content – from travel experts to case studies. If you work in this sector, then have responses ready and you could appear in The Times, Conde Nast Traveller, The Independent, or National Geographic Traveller.

Which journalists are sending media requests for June?

Other opportunities for PRs in June and beyond

June is Pride Month and we expect to see requests for LGBTQ+ history experts and information on different events taking place across the country. Last year in June, just over 1% of the requests were looking to cover this.

Men’s Health Week takes place from 9-15 June this year. Around 1% of enquires in June 2024 were looking to cover this topic, with a big focus on mental health. If you have any experts in this field, have comments ready to secure media coverage and help make a difference.

Want to get the most out of the ResponseSource Journalist Enquiry Service? Check out this explainer. 

And download our latest report ‘How to manage your reputation in a world transformed by AI: As industries adapt, what will be the role of PR?’ for how artificial intelligence is already changing PR and comms.