INMA today announced the launch of a Young Audiences Initiative aimed at helping news publishers engage and retain younger generations through approaches tailored to how they consume news, share stories, and build trust. 

Swiss digital media leader Kerstin Hasse has been appointed to lead the 2026-2027 initiative, which is supported by Knight Foundation. 

As younger consumers increasingly discover news via mobile, social platforms and creator-driven formats, legacy news media must evolve. The Young Audiences Initiative seeks to equip publishers with a practical playbook for engaging younger audiences — through “visual-first thinking, radical honesty, and co-creation” rather than old-school broadcast models. 

The scope of the initiative covers: 

• Audience strategy: Understanding how Gen Z and Millennials discover, trust and choose news – including the growing influence of the creator economy.

• Platform dynamics: What works (and what doesn’t) on TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, newsletters, and beyond.

• Trust and transparency: What makes younger audiences tune in — and tune out. 

• Format innovation: From vertical video and mobile-friendly design to creator-inspired and participatory formats. 

• Engagement models: Community-driven news, interactivity, participatory journalism, and co-creation. 

• Revenue models: Subscriptions, memberships, creator-style monetisation, and youth-friendly monetisation strategies.

• Product development: Building products and services younger readers actually want to use. 

• Cultural: Tone, representation, and identity — and why they matter for younger audiences.

Under the Young Audiences Initiative, INMA will offer members a comprehensive suite of tools and resources, including newsletters, blogs, reports, Webinars, events, and private Ask Me Anything sessions. 

Leadership for a new era of journalism 

The Young Audiences Initiative will be led by Kerstin Hasse, a digital media leader and expert in newsroom innovation and user-centered storytelling.

Hasse previously served as managing editor at Tages-Anzeiger — the youngest woman ever appointed to this role — where she led interdisciplinary digital teams across audio, video, social, data storytelling, and product collaboration.

A Sulzberger alumna of Columbia University (2024), she has shaped numerous innovative storytelling formats and built loyal communities around podcasts, newsletters, and participatory journalism.

Through her journalistic experience, Hasse has gained deep insight into how younger audiences navigate news today — from creator-driven media models to community-based engagement. She is also the creator and host of the emerging podcast and newsletter Hasse mit Liebe, which explores zeitgeist topics through accessible and community-oriented storytelling.

Under her leadership, INMA aims to bridge traditional journalism values with youthful energy, creativity and authenticity. 

Why this matters now 

As the global media landscape fractures — with younger generations increasingly turning to social platforms, creator-led content and community-driven media — established news publishers face an urgent challenge: adapt or risk irrelevance.

By launching the Young Audiences Initiative, INMA is helping publishers rethink not just what they deliver but how they deliver: in formats, channels, and voices that resonate with the next generation. 

“We believe publishers must meet young people where they are — with formats they love, voices they trust, and space to take part,” said Earl J. Wilkinson, executive director and CEO of INMA. “Under Kerstin’s leadership, we believe INMA can make a contribution to news publishers anxious for bridges to generations rewriting the rules of engagement.” 

“Younger audiences aren’t disengaged — they’re unimpressed by formats that weren’t built for them,” said the 35-year-old Hasse, who is based in Zürich. “I’m excited to work with publishers around the world to rethink how we tell stories, build trust in voices and create journalism that feels relevant, useful and authentic to the next generation.“ 

With the backing of Knight Foundation and the global reach of INMA’s membership network, the Young Audiences Initiative will offer a rare, high-impact opportunity to experiment, learn and scale what works when reaching Gen Z and Millennials, Wilkinson said. 

Knight Foundation is a U.S. philanthropic organisation that invests in journalism, community innovation, and the arts. It funds initiatives that strengthen informed communities, support press freedom, advance local news sustainability, and foster civic engagement through technology and creative expression.

Header art: Adobe Stock Pixel-Shot.

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