How do media producers cope with the risks and uncertainties of media innovation and disruption?

We, as media creators, are the ones who get to decide which trends we're going to co-create. Before we do that, we need to ask ourselves, what do we stand for? What are our values? While it's important to monitor "trends", it's more critical to co-create NEW trends in media that disrupt and interrupt trends that create division, polarization and fear/scarcity. If current trends & narratives are promoting and elevating these types of stories, then we as creators and leaders in media need to be responsible and accountable for challenging the status quo - those "trends", by not hopping on band wagons. It's our duty to co-create equitable trends & narratives that create dignity, safety, and peace for all of our children - our future leaders.

Understanding the trends is a good start until journalists and media producers get carried away by the trends. I have worked with many journalists and producers recently who got misled by a trend and got lost in “translating” it into valuable production. Other producers try the other way by countering a trend with creating another trend without clear vision of why they wanted to create a trend in the first place. We have to remember that we should keep our focus all the time and when we are swimming in a murky sea of trends, we should remember ethics and basics of production and journalism.

It's vital to have a habit of continual training in order to hone your skill sets. This way you'll be less surprised or upset by disruptions to the craft...

The young journalists at Podium.me are constantly adapting to unexpected situations, recording on their phones in parks, school corridors, dealing with interruptions and turning them into vital insightful parts of the story. Adapting is problem solving and if you can do that you will always get a great story

Sharing your networks and being generous with your contacts is the best way to get ahead in your career. When you are on LinkedIn or feeling intimidated by a conference setting just think of ways to help someone else and start to promote their work instead of your own. The energy you put into this will come back and benefit you too.

The importance of innovation and differentiation in media production cannot be overstated. However, it's not just about creating original and engaging content. It's about understanding and anticipating the needs of your target audience and the problems they face, and being able to position yourself as an expert in solving these problems for them. As media producers, this also means cultivating a culture of adaptability and resilience, where failure is seen as an opportunity to learn and grow. By staying true to our unique voices, styles and identities, and by constantly striving to deliver value to our audiences (by being a clear solution to their problems), we can weather the storms of change and emerge stronger.

Chasing algorithms becomes a dead end and waste of limited resources for many small businesses. Many don’t desire a blow out business. Values drive business. Human interaction and providing a value to community is a real goal. Using conventional wisdom of human dynamics may be the more productive influencer for these audiences. Take a step back from social media platforms to find those tried and true techniques matched with supportive tech.

Say yes, as much as you can, if you are thinking of saying no, stop yourself and question why, what right do I have to block this idea. Not every idea goes somewhere. But if you let them all through, you will never miss a good one.