Why Media Brands Are Advertising

Publications Are Pushing The Importance Of Journalism—And Subscriptions.

- Kristina Monllos

The proliferation of “fake news”— be that the insult lobbed at journalists and publications that President Donald Trump and his administration detest or the websites peddling false information across the web to make a quick buck—has brought about a wave of advertising from news media organizations looking to underscore the value of responsible journalism.

Earlier this month, Gannett became the latest publisher to release a campaign touting its publications’ efforts and showing how they had impacted the communities they cover.

“Media has gotten a lot of attention in the political cycle that we had in 2016,” said Gannett CMO Andy Yost. “It’s important for media organizations like ours to showcase the great work we’re doing and the importance of journalism.”

Gannett’s campaign, which highlights the work of local papers like The Tennessean or the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, was created by its in-house marketing team and will be running across Gannett’s digital network (the USA Today Network has 110 million unique visitors per month) and print properties (the company has in excess of 3 million print subscribers).

Gannett certainly isn’t alone: In recent months media brands like The Atlantic, Vanity Fair, The New York Times and WNYC have released their own advertising campaigns.