News companies in Africa are adapting to a rapidly changing environment, balancing traditional journalism with innovative digital strategies.

During the recent INMA Africa News Media Summit, prominent leaders from the African news media landscape — Rahaman Abiola, editor-in-chief of Legit.ng in Nigeria; Naziru Mikailu Abubakar, executive director and editor-in-chief of Daily Trust in Nigeria; and Susan Nsibirwa, managing director of Nation Media Group (NMG) in Uganda — shared their insights on the dynamics and challenges confronting the industry.

The panel discussion highlighted the complex challenges and innovative strategies employed by the news publishers in navigating the evolving African news media landscape.

Each organisation is adopting a forward-thinking approach, integrating technology, fostering innovation, and addressing challenges such as press freedom, social media interference, and the need for cultural evolution. These efforts emphasise their commitment to maintaining journalistic integrity while adapting to the demands of a digital-first world.

Abiola identified three major factors currently impacting African newsrooms: 

1. Rapid evolution due to digital transformation: The shift to digital platforms has dramatically altered newsroom operations, necessitating constant adaptation and innovation.
2. Attacks on press freedom: Journalists in Africa face significant risks, including arrest, arbitrary detention, or even death, particularly when challenging government policies. Amnesty International has documented numerous instances where press freedom has been threatened.
3. Interference from social media platforms: While social media offers opportunities for content distribution, it also presents challenges, such as algorithm changes and policies that can hinder news dissemination.

Legit Nigeria’s approach to overcoming challenges

Legit.ng, under Abiola’s leadership, has distinguished itself as a frontrunner in Nigeria's digital news arena. 

Recognised by the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism as the leading digital news Web site in Nigeria for 2023 and 2024, Legit.ng’s success is attributed to its data-driven and people-centric approach. The platform's strategic partnerships with global entities like the United Nations, INMA, Google, and Facebook further underline its influence and reach.

To navigate the three challenges mentioned, Legit.ng has adopted several strategic measures: 

1. Technology integration: Legit.ng has integrated advanced technology into its newsroom workflow, using tools like X (formerly Twitter), X Pro (formerly TweetDeck), and BuzzSumo for real-time monitoring. This approach enables comprehensive performance evaluation, competitor analysis, and data-driven content decisions, supported by platforms like Google Analytics 4 (GA4) and Media IO.
2. Originality in news: Emphasising the importance of original content, Legit.ng enforces a zero-tolerance policy for plagiarism. The platform sources news from credible outlets and original sources, integrating expert commentary to enhance credibility and improving search engine rankings. It also produces a variety of content formats, including interviews, features, analyses, listicles, polls, and quizzes, adhering to the E-E-A-T principles (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness). “For us at Legit, we ensure that the news is sourced from the original source,” Abiola said. 
3. Innovative news distribution strategy: Legit.ng has developed a robust news distribution strategy, focusing on creating Picture Posts with links that include quality images, creative social leads, strong calls to action, and proper picture crediting. This strategy ensures engaging and effective content dissemination across social platforms.
4. Compliance with social media policies: The platform maintains strict adherence to social media policies, developing detailed policy guides for all team members, conducting regular training sessions, and updating teams on new rules. This ensures compliance with evolving digital media regulations.
5. Dealing with press freedom pressures: Legit.ng addresses press freedom challenges through rigorous fact-checking and verification processes, providing legal support for journalists, collaborating with media rights groups, and maintaining balanced and unbiased reporting. 

Media Trust Group embraces a digital-first approach

The Media Trust Group encompasses multiple platforms:Daily Trust (print), Trust TV, Digital Trust, and Trust Radio.

“We represent the country in our news form in terms of gender, in terms of ethnicity, in terms of religion. So we represent Nigeria,” Abubakar said. 

Daily Trust is known for its investigative journalism and operates the most diverse newsroom in Nigeria, representing the country across the board. The organisation delivers news in both English and Hausa languages, with a significant presence in Abuja and Lagos.

Daily Trust has a strong Pan-African presence, highlighted by its African of the Year award. The award has recognised notable figures like Danny Jordan, Dr. Denis Mukwege, Mrs. Fatima Bazeye, and Thabo Mbeki.

The organisation has embraced a digital-first approach, integrating bilingual and multiplatform roles that blend marketing, sales, and editorial planning. A significant focus has been on visual-first initiatives, including investments in visual products, establishing a social news desk, and forming partnerships with organisations like Google and NGOs in Nigeria. 

Despite its digital advancements, print remains central to Daily Trust’s strategy, generating the majority of its revenue. 

“But to separate the print from the digital, we created a completely new subsidiary for each as a company on its own, so that we allow them to innovate and to be agile,” Abubakar said.

Nation Media Group Uganda’s transformation XX

Susan Nsibirwa took on the role of managing director of Nation Media Group (NMG) Uganda in January 2024. NMG is the largest independent media house in East and Central Africa, with operations spanning print, broadcast, and digital media. 

In Uganda, NMG’s prominent brands include Spark TV, Ennyanda, The EastAfrican, Daily Monitor, NTV, Dembe FM, and KFM, with The Daily Monitor and NTV being the main revenue generators.

Challenges and transformation

Nsibirwa highlighted that NMG, as a legacy media organisation, is not only striving to survive but also to thrive in a challenging media environment. 

The company is undergoing significant transformation, focusing on newsroom innovation, continuous improvement, and investment in data technology. A critical component of this transformation involves reviewing job descriptions (JDs) and key performance indicators (KPIs) for each team member to align with the company’s digital ambitions.

“We are currently reviewing the job descriptions and KPIs for each team member… . This puts us in a place where everybody can start thinking about the future and getting us out of our comfort zone,” Nsibirwa said.

Cultural and skills evolution

NMG is dedicated to upskilling, training, and cultural evolution to prepare its workforce for the future. Nsibirwa emphasised that mindset is the biggest challenge for legacy media, stressing the importance of leadership in clearly communicating the organisation’s direction and the steps needed to achieve its goals.

Newsroom transformation

NMG is centralising its news operations, integrating niche hubs for non-news content, and streamlining production processes. 

The company is also establishing a planning function to uphold editorial standards and encourage cross-platform skills across the newsroom. New leadership roles, such as heads of content hubs, social, search and analytics, news planning, newsroom production, digital platforms, and partnerships and upskilling, have been introduced to support this transformation, along with a research editor.

Premium content strategy

NMG’s premium content strategy, exemplified by the launch of Monitor Prime Ad in October 2023, has already yielded significant results: 

• Two million daily digital interactions on its platforms.
• Rapid growth in daily subscription packages.
• Paywall revenue growth at an average rate of 115% monthly.
• Overall digital revenue is 22% above budget and 54% higher than in 2023. 

Nsibirwa described the current scenario as “nothing short of a dynamic work environment that we’ve had to create for this journey, that we are on right now,” reflecting NMG’s ambitious journey toward a digitally integrated future. These transformation efforts aim to ensure that NMG remains competitive and relevant in the evolving media landscape.

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