Layoffs, ChatGPT, and What It Means for Media/PR
Plus: A few assignments
Hello, subscribers.
I’m not gonna sugar-coat it: Last week was ROUGH. We’ve been hearing about media layoffs left and right over the past few months, but the 7% staff reduction at Dotdash Meredith hit especially hard. Why?
First, I know several amazing editors who are now out of a job, which is heartbreaking. And it’s a shame, considering DDMP is the largest publisher in the country and should have the capital for staffing. Those teams already seemed to run quite lean. And most of those displaced editors have now been dumped into the freelance pool, so look for them there.
Second, several editors I work with regularly were part of that downsizing effort … and that means I’m now without contacts at the usual places I sell stories. I’m trying to let the dust settle and then figure out who’s still left at the handful of outlets I contribute to over there. It could take some time to see how this all plays out, who I can work with, who has budget (some DDMP editors are already tweeting they they won’t have budget til Q2!), etc.
(According to my intel: nobody on the performance marketing teams, aka the ecommerce/shopping teams, was let go … so leadership certainly see the value in those revenue-generating departments. I’m told the Brides team is still intact. TripSavvy lost several editors and I think the ultimate fate of that pub is questionable at this time, as did T+L on the print side. BHG lost their entire beauty vertical. That’s all I’ve heard so far.)
And finally, this is just another massive blow to the industry during a time when we’re already seriously struggling. If you’ve been paying attention to the chatGPT discussion of AI robots taking over writing, it’s not just a hypothetical scenario anymore. Check out my Tweet, which now has 155k views:
Yep, you read that right: BuzzFeed is now using AI to write content and for some horrifying reason that’s made their stock JUMP! But that’s not the only publishing company who’s moving forward with this technology. TMB’s CEO says they are also going to be experimenting with it.
But if you’ve been following headlines, CNET started using it, and then had to issue a bunch of corrections to articles because of robot errors. How embarrassing that they didn’t have anyone editing these pieces. Where’s the oversight? We’re just letting the robots run amok already?!
It’s hard not to feel worried about what this all means for the future of my profession — one that I’ve dedicated 23 years of my life to. I’ve been playing around with chatGPT over the last few weeks just to see what it’s capable of and it does some things rather well, like when I asked it to write this poem about all the media layoffs (it’s a long poem, so click my Tweet to read the whole thing):
That poem damn near broke my heart. It was beautifully written and evoked plenty of emotion. Stupid robot can write!
But it does other things terribly … I’ve caught it providing erroneous results on numerous occasions because it’ll pull from literally anything on the web (including random blogs that have zero credibility and were obviously never fact-checked). So beware, as CNET learned the hard way!
Will robots take over my job in the next 5-10 years? Maybe. I’m mostly worried about formulaic articles, like listicles, gift guides and shopping roundups, to be honest. Things that require interviews and personal experiences aren’t a concern. Everything else? Remains to be seen, but as this technology grows more sophisticated in the coming years, there will be more uses for it.
I do think that publications will end up making do with fewer and fewer writers over time, lowering those editorial budgets even more (which is almost hard to imagine) … but they WILL have to hire more editors to polish up the robot content + fact-checkers to ensure accuracy. So there may be a shift in the writer:editor ratio at many outlets.
There’s plenty of speculation that Google’s almighty algorithm will be dinging content created by AI technology, which should certainly dissuade major outlets from using it and tanking their search results. But who really knows if that’s the case? Google is coming out with its own AI, so why would it penalize its own creation?
We’ll continue to see how this technology unfolds and how it impacts staffing decisions across major media outlets … but for now, know this: Your friends in the media world are a bit scared, stressed and sad. The layoffs and tech takeover is a lot to deal with at once. And while I always try to focus on abundance and rarely slip into a scarcity mindset, this whole thing is incredibly unsettling. Especially with how quickly it all came to be last week.
So what does all of this mean for PR?
First, I just want you to be aware of this massive shift in the industry … it’s important to keep all of this in mind as you send pitches and follow ups (and if you aren’t getting responses, maybe your editor isn’t on staff anymore).
It’s also a good time to start educating your clients on what’s going on and how the industry is shifting so they can adjust their expectations.
Also, building and maintaining relationships with freelancers is going to be more crucial than ever before, because you can’t count on editors who have been with pubs for years and years to still be there down the road. I offer a Become a Journalist’s BFF: Networking and Relationship Management session … let me know if you’d like to sign up for a workshop!
And finally, you should start thinking about how this will affect how you do your job down the road. Will your pitches be read by robots instead of writers eventually? Will earned media be even harder to land? This industry could look very different in just a few short years.
I’m guessing you have questions/comments … so let’s chat about this. The comments section is open and I’ll be responding to everything. Should I host an Ask Me Anything about this topic ASAP?
Beyond that, scroll down to see what I need for upcoming assignments!
Jill
PS: You can find even more industry insights in my other Substack, which I team up with Nicole Pajer to compile each week! This week’s topic will be about networking, media events and desksides.
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Bon Communications is looking for an Account Supervisor (5+ years experience) to join its team. With a small team of senior specialists and deep connections from coast-to-coast, Bon Comms delivers the expertise of a full-service PR agency to their impressive roster of chefs, bartenders, hotels, wine / spirit professionals, interior designers and more from all over the country. This team is Denver-based, but a remote candidate is a plus! If you're passionate about hospitality and lifestyle PR, please email Katie@boncomms.com to introduce yourself with a cover letter and resume.
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So heartbreaking to see these publications lay off their staff. Thank you for making us aware of it, so we can be cognizant in our outreach. You're a great writer, I'm rooting for you to find new places for your stories!
On the ChatGPT front, the marketing team at my brand relies on it SO much, and I hate it. They find they still have to re-write everything, so it makes sense that CNET always has to issue corrections. I agree with you that interviews and long form features will never be able to written effectively with AI.
Oh my gosh :/ This is heartbreaking.