DALLAS (29 September 2016) – The relationship between Facebook and the news media industry is increasingly complex, requires context, and has room for improvement, according to a new report released today by the International News Media Association (INMA).

“The Facebook-Media Relationship Status: It’s Complicated” aims to provide an executive-level overview of how the social media giant intersects with news publishers as of late 2016.

In this report, INMA:

• Breaks down the practical audience, advertising, editorial, and customer service implications of working with Facebook.
   
• Jumps into the consumer’s mind as it relates to Facebook.
   
• Attempts to thoughtfully address the fast-emerging role of algorithms.
   
• Puts Facebook in the broader context of platforms, technology, and disruption.
   
• Makes suggestions on strategies for news media companies, mindful that this is complex, it is international, and no two companies are alike.

Author Grzegorz “Greg” Piechota fuses the world of news media and academia to suggest a thoughtful partnership between Facebook and news media companies – a relationship that should be based on transparency and mutual support.

The report focuses on eight key areas:

• What Facebook does and how it works
   
• The market position of all Facebook platforms, including Messenger, Instagram, and WhatsApp
   
• Major usage trends and patterns worldwide
   
• Facebook’s News Feed algorithms
   
• Academic research on people’s use of social platforms and the effects that social platforms have on them
   
• Facebook’s complicated relationship with the news industry, punctuated by a survey of news publishers about this relationship
   
• How media companies use Facebook, including acquisition of customers and advertising opportunities
   
• Possible strategies for media companies moving forward

“No subject today occupies the minds of news media executives like the relationship with Facebook, the primary driver of digital traffic for publishers worldwide,” said Earl J. Wilkinson, executive director and CEO of INMA. “This new report thoughtfully explores the totality of the relationship, serving as an executive overview and a strategy blueprint.”

The report’s author, Grzegorz “Greg” Piechota, is a research associate at Harvard Business School in the United States who is studying technology-enabled disruption patterns across industries, including news media. A 2016 Nieman Fellow at Harvard University, Piechota explored the transformation of the media business and the future of work in creative industries. In addition, Piechota serves as digital strategy adviser at Gazeta Wyborcza (Agora) in Poland and consults with media companies worldwide. He is a member of the INMA Board of Directors and is a past president of INMA’s Europe Division.

The new INMA report is available for free to INMA members and available to non-members for US$695 – which includes one year of association membership, all strategic reports in the next year, and access to all INMA content and peer connection tools.

Members may download the report and non-members may order the report by going to: www.inma.org/reports.cfm.

The International News Media Association (INMA) is a global community of market-leading news media companies reinventing how they engage audiences and grow revenue in a multi-media environment. The INMA community consists of 7,700+ executives at 600+ media companies in 60+ countries. Headquartered in Dallas, INMA has offices in Antwerp, New Delhi, San Salvador, and São Paulo.