She told staff, "We are not producing a product that enough people want." Weiss also said, "Our strategy until now has been: Cling to the audience that remains on broadcast television. I'm here to tell you that if we stick to that strategy, we're toast. Starting now, we have to focus on what we're building, not on what we're maintaining."
If journalism is the patient, the condition is chronic relapse: Whenever the country's foundational truths surface - racial, historical, or structural - newsrooms retreat, and coverage collapses at the very moments honesty is required. Inclusivity - in coverage, priorities, and who newsrooms reflect - has always been a weather vane for America. The external climate doesn't stay outside; it walks in with leadership and culture.
For years, audience research such as Next Gen News has shown that news consumers seek affinity and trust from individuals, not institutions. Audience members want to follow faces, not mastheads. News publishers who think that offering salary, benefits, and a byline is incentive enough for a journalist to bring their own audience to the publisher are fooling themselves. The creators news consumers follow on YouTube, TikTok, Substack, and Ghost offer personality, affinity, and transparency.
