2024 has been an incredibly busy year for journalists covering international politics. Over 70 countries have had elections or are going to the polls, including major global players such as the UK, US, France, Russia, and India.

With trust in the media declining and interest in hard news waning – what do publishers need to do to rebuild confidence and engagement and keep potential voters informed? For a recent Tickaroo webinar, speakers Victoria Steveley, deputy chief audience editor at The Belfast Telegraph, Pip Tomson, presenter & journalist, Daniel Mollitor, business editor at DPA (German Press Agency), and Naomi Owusu, CEO at Tickaroo shared their insight.

Open and transparent journalism

The rise of misinformation and disinformation in recent years is one of several reasons why trust in the media has declined. In Victoria’s opinion, journalists need to be the ‘responsible voice in the conversation’ on social media.

‘You have to be quite transparent these days about what you do know and what you don’t know. We may not be able to tell people exactly what is going on in the moment, but we can step in and say “we know that this wild rumour isn’t true”.’

Due to the prevalence of fake news, it’s more important than ever that the media get their facts correct. When Pip was working at the BBC, the newsroom had a policy – ‘we were told it is much more important to get it right than to get it first.’ This sentiment is shared by Daniel who said that the DPA’s motto is ‘be first, but first be right’.

Giving the audience a look at what goes on behind the scenes is another way to build trust – something that Northern Ireland editor Sam McBride has been focusing on at the Belfast Telegraph. Victoria said:

‘Sam’s newsletter tends to be behind the scenes of how he does his job and I think people really appreciate that. He’s also tried to shine a light on the things that make the relationship quite difficult in terms of transparency and trust because sometimes there are good reasons why you can’t say something. This could be legalities around court coverage or police concerns around safety.’

An audience first approach

The audience first approach, Naomi believes, is a great way to regain the trust of people.

‘It’s an ongoing trend we have seen with publishers we have been working with in Germany and Europe. Journalists are taking on the dialogue and saying to the audience, do you have any questions? Who should we interview? Can we make a video of your situation? And I think that’s really important.’

It’s something that Pip encountered during her time at GB News. She explained that ‘viewers loved being name checked. They love the place where they live being read out. It means so much to them because it feels like they are valued and that keeps that relationship going between the programme and the viewer.’ This greater level of engagement is a crucial part of an audience first approach and the public want to be part of the story and get their voices heard, as Victoria has found also at the Belfast Telegraph.

‘People are very willing to engage in conversations, not always in a positive way, to be fair, but they do reach out to our journalists. They bring stories to us as much as we go out and find them. It helps get a really good reflection of what people are interested in.’

Benefits of live blogging

Live blogs are a great way to keep people engaged in a story and can build trust too, according to Naomi.

‘Publishers use live blogs, not only for elections, but for special situations in a city. For example finding a bomb, this would create a lifeline and let people know what’s going on and that builds trust. Plus, people can engage with journalists within the comments on social media and this can be fed back into the live blog.’

For Naomi, being able to watch the journalist at work enables audiences to see them as a human being to connect with  – a point that Victoria resonated with: 

‘The strongest live blogs are the ones that inject some humanity, some personality – that keeps people engaged. It makes the audience see journalists as people rather than avatars.’

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