Annual Report

117th Operating Year of News Media Finland

The significance of journalism was brought into focus

In the 117th year of operation of News Media Finland, the focus was on recognising journalism and understanding its significance.

The year was overshadowed by the increasingly tense international situation. Russia continued its strikes against Ukraine, and no progress was made towards peace. The United States reduced its support for Ukraine, criticised and threatened its European partners, and stirred up military action in different parts of the world.

There was intensifying debate surrounding the challenges associated with American and Chinese tech giants. The use of artificial intelligence became increasingly widespread.

About 65 per cent of news media revenue was derived from printed newspapers, but there were very large differences between different media. The digital transition was accelerated by the rising costs of physical distribution.

Subscribers accounted for nearly two-thirds of news media revenue. The advertising market still did not grow.

Safeguarding of interests: Gambling reform will be favourable to news media

The Finnish Parliament passed gambling reform legislation, under which the marketing of gambling services will be allowed in news media from July 2027 onwards. This will support fairer competition with international platform giants.

VAT on newspapers and magazines was kept unchanged. The need for media policy was underlined particularly by the financial difficulties experienced by local newspapers and the Finnish News Agency STT.

We engaged in advocacy efforts related to the national consequences of the regulation of political advertising and provided training to our members on the obligations imposed by the legislation. We also ensured that the protection of journalistic sources is taken into consideration in legislative projects.

With funding from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, we began supporting regional news media in Ukraine with regard to the development of journalistic ethics and self-regulation. Financial support continued through the Nordic Ukrainian media fund.

Industry information, communications and marketing: Wide-reaching, reliable and impactful news media

In Finland, trust in the news remained among the highest in the world. As many as 95 per cent of people aged 15 and over read newspapers in some form, and 88 per cent read them digitally.

Among Finnish media, Yle and newspapers were perceived as the most reliable and high-quality media online, and newspapers were rated as the most educational media by a wide margin. Surveys also supported media sales: newspapers were the most important source of information in connection with the municipal and county elections, and city newspapers also had a strong position when compared to other media.

We studied subscription patterns and the retention of digital subscriptions, and identified different groups of subscribers and reasons for the cancellation of digital subscriptions. The media sector nature roadmap created by the Finnish Media Federation and its member associations, including News Media Finland, provided companies in media sector with concrete support for their efforts related to nature and biodiversity.

We produced material for our member media to encourage consumers to support education and democracy by paying for quality journalism, also in digital form.

Media education and information literacy: Tools for recognising journalism on social media

During News Week, the campaign Kun selaat, tunnista luotettavat lähteet (”When you scroll, recognise reliable sources”) focused on young people’s day-to-day media consumption and recognising journalism when using social media on a daily basis. According to the Nuoret ja uutismediasuhde (”Young people and their relationship to news media”) survey, TikTok strengthened its position as the most important news channel for people aged 13–18.

In the project Vastuullista journalismia TikTokissa (”Responsible journalism on TikTok”), we organised training related to short-form video journalism and surveyed the TikTok journalism practices among our member media.

We reached out to teachers through our oppituntivinkit (”lesson tips”) newsletter and social media channels, and we offered tools for media education on our uutismediakasvatus.fi website.

On International Literacy Day, our Lue lisää (”Read more”) campaign highlighted the reading that often goes unnoticed in daily social media use, and over 3,300 pupils participated in our first Uutisjahti (”News Hunt”) challenge.

In our information literacy project, we strengthened the recognition of journalism, trust in reliable information, and the understanding of the role of journalistic media in a democratic society.

Local media: Promoting reliable local journalism

Together with city and local newspapers, we strengthened the operating conditions for local journalism and highlighted the importance of high-quality local content and the role of local media in preventing news deserts, supporting democracy and disseminating everyday information.

In the spring, the local newspapers of News Media Finland, along with the Association for Local Papers’ Editors-in-Chief, urged decision-makers to take action to mitigate rising distribution costs and safeguard local journalism throughout Finland.

In the competitions we organised, we highlighted the journalistic expertise of city and local newspapers, as well as their role as part of a vibrant local community. Prizes were awarded to the best newspapers at the Vuoden parhaat (“Best of the Year”) gala held at the Suuret Lehtipäivät event in Jyväskylä.

Suomen Lehdistö: New story formats in the digital environment

Our Suomen Lehdistö publication shed the last vestiges of print-based design, and we launched new story formats online and in our newsletter. In the spring, we released Paine (”Pressure”), a six-part podcast series focused on high-pressure situations in the media sector. Our annual statistical package was published exclusively online for the first time.

Artificial intelligence as a theme was emphasised in our journalistic content, and we also experimented with its use as part of our editorial work.

Events and training: Practical learning and interaction

Our diverse training events, which were mostly held as webinars, reached more than 2,000 people during the year. The Suuret Lehtipäivät event held in Jyväskylä was attended by over 200 participants from city and local newspapers from all over Finland.

Services for members: Supporting the day-to-day operations of member companies

Our experts supported member companies in matters related to the development of the industry and legal issues related to publishing operations. They also visited member companies during the year.

Following the introduction of new accessibility regulations, member companies participated in accessibility audits of online publications, and we shared their experiences among all our member companies. The EU Regulation on the transparency and targeting of political advertising, which entered into force in October, raised many questions, which we collected from our members and relayed to the supervisory authority.