Artificial intelligence is increasingly reshaping the global media publishing industry, with executives placing growing importance on its role across newsrooms and business operations.
According to data from Statista, media leaders from 51 countries surveyed between November and December 2024 and again in late 2025 indicate that AI adoption is accelerating, particularly in back-end functions.
Back-end automation remains the most valued application of AI, with 64 per cent of media executives in 2025 rating it as “very important,” up from 60 per cent the previous year. These functions include tagging, copyediting, and transcription—areas where AI improves efficiency, reduces turnaround time, and allows journalists to focus on editorial judgment rather than repetitive tasks.
Coding and product development recorded one of the sharpest increases, rising from 28 per cent in 2024 to 44 per cent in 2025. This reflects growing reliance on AI to support digital innovation, platform optimisation, and newsroom tools development.
Commercial uses, including subscription modelling and predicting readers’ willingness to pay, also rose modestly to 33 per cent.
AI’s role in news gathering—such as identifying story leads and interrogating data—grew from 24 to 29 per cent, while content creation with human oversight remained relatively stable at around 30 per cent. This stability highlights continued caution within newsrooms, where editorial integrity and accuracy remain paramount.
Overall, the findings underscore a strategic shift: media organisations are prioritising AI as an operational enabler rather than a replacement for journalism, embedding it primarily where it enhances efficiency, sustainability, and digital growth.
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