Insight Shapes News
Hosted by Nils Ove Håland Riise at Kilkaya. Deep-dive conversations with industry experts on editorial strategy, audience engagement, AI-driven personalization, and the evolving relationship between technology and newsrooms.
All Episodes
21 episodes
The King Is Dead. Do We Switch Off Personalization in News?
Christoph Schmitz at Schibsted
Some news is too important for anyone to miss. When one story matters to everyone, where does personalization belong on the news homepage? Christoph Schmitz, Product Manager for Curate, Schibsted's content recommendation system, returns to explore how editorial judgment and personalization work during major breaking news — the layers of editorial control, why recommendation systems need to forget, and what a fully personalized homepage could look like if editors couldn't pin stories but still retained editorial control.
The Change Tax: Why Print-Era Hierarchy Is Killing News Media in the AI Age.
Selma Stern, Independent Advisor
Most people in media have felt the change tax even if they haven't heard the term — work that keeps coming back without ever getting resolved. Selma Stern, former Chief of Staff at Axel Springer and Chief Customer Officer at Fortune, explains why newsroom structures built for print are becoming a real constraint in the AI age, and what her analysis of employee reviews from 20 publishers in 9 countries reveals about who is growing and who is shrinking.
The News Homepage Formula: A/B Testing, Ice Ice Baby stunt, and Losing Control to Personalization.
Helge Voll Hustad at VG (Schibsted)
Helge Voll Hustad, Homepage Editor at VG — Norway's largest news site — walks through the real mechanics of editing a tabloid homepage at scale: the famous 'Ice Ice Baby' front page, balancing hard news and light news, where AI headline generation breaks down, and what it costs an editor when an algorithm takes over everything below the top 20 stories.
INMA Berlin, Die Zeit, Media Pioneer, and Why Trust Is the Only Advantage Left.
Tarjei Gilbrant at Kilkaya
Fresh from the INMA World Media Congress in Berlin, host Nils Ove Håland Riise and Kilkaya CEO Tarjei Gilbrant debrief on their study tours of major German publishers — Die Zeit's AI-assisted data journalism, why homepages are still built for the wrong reader, Media Pioneer's community-first subscription model, and why trust may be the only advantage left for publishers.
Introducing Personalization Where the Newsroom Usually Says No
Tarmo Paju & Ivar Krustok at Delfi Estonia
Content personalization in news products has typically been placed in low-risk areas — below articles or in separate recommendation modules. What happens when it moves higher up the page? Delfi started in the sports section, a high-volume environment with frequent updates and a loyal audience. The discussion focuses on how personalization is applied within defined boundaries, where editors can prioritise, override, and adjust outcomes.
Technology Is No Longer Neutral. Why Infrastructure Is Becoming a Strategic Risk for News Companies.
Endre Dingsør at Choose European
Technology used to feel neutral. That assumption is now being challenged. Endre Dingsør explores why infrastructure choices are increasingly a strategic question — and why digital sovereignty is becoming a leadership responsibility.
The Leadership Model in Newsrooms Is Broken. What Needs to Change?
Jeremy Clifford at Chrysalis Leadership
Jeremy Clifford, former Editor-in-Chief and now leadership coach, argues that the demands placed on newsroom leaders have shifted significantly — and most weren't trained for it.
Algorithms vs Editors: Who Decides What You Read at Scale?
Christoph Schmitz at Schibsted
Christoph Schmitz, Product Manager at Schibsted and lead of Curate, explains how personalization works in practice inside a large media organization — and where the real risks appear.
All-In on News Subscriptions. How Süddeutsche Zeitung Plans to Fund Journalism by 2030.
Dominic Grzbielok at Süddeutsche Zeitung
Why do people really pay for news in 2025 — and what keeps them paying month after month? A deep dive into SZ's subscription strategy and what it means for the future of journalism funding.
Trust in Numbers: How Shared Data Makes Publishers Stronger Together.
Bente Håvimb at MBL (Medietall)
What happens when competitors share their most sensitive numbers — and build one common truth instead of competing dashboards? Bente Håvimb explains how shared industry data creates trust.
The News Homepage that wanted to be Smart.
Dana Schlüenzen at Hamburger Morgenpost (MOPO)
When 80% of homepage clicks happen in the very top rows, this is exactly where personalization has the biggest impact. Dana shares how MOPO approached smarter front page management.
The AI Agent Age In News: Why Ippen Media Built a Lab for the Future of Journalism.
Markus Franz at Ippen Media
What happens when you give local newsrooms their own AI lab — and build tools that think with you, not just for you? Markus Franz shares Ippen's hands-on experience.
The Buying Shift: What Publishers Must Understand About Modern Media Buying.
Ann Jack at WPP
What do advertisers really want from publishers — and why do so many budgets still flow to big tech? Ann Jack of WPP breaks down the shifting dynamics of modern media buying.
Unlocking Storytelling for News: How Publishers Can Escape CMS Limits and Bring Stories to Life.
Tine Karlsen at Vev
How can news publishers escape the constraints of their CMS and create richer storytelling experiences? Tine Karlsen from Vev explains the tools and thinking behind modern digital storytelling.
Too Many Documents, Too Little Time: How iTromsø Saved 80% of Research Time with AI.
Lars Giske at iTromsø
Lars Adrian Giske, Head of AI at iTromsø, explains how his team built Djinn — an AI-powered tool that surfaces the most newsworthy content from massive piles of public documents, cutting research time by 80%.
Delfi Meedia: Cracking the Subscription Code for News!
Ivar Krustok at Delfi Meedia
Most news publishers struggle to get even 1% of households to subscribe. Delfi Meedia in Estonia has reached 18% digital subscription penetration. Ivar Krustok explains how they did it.
The User Needs Expert: Are You Creating Content Your Audience Actually Needs?
Lars Jensen
Lars Jensen reveals the power of the User Needs framework — a way of thinking about content that shifts focus from what publishers want to say, to what audiences actually need.