AFRICA SUMMITS AT A GLANCE
Media Revenue
|
Newsroom & Tech
| Audience Development
Africa’s news brands turn attention into audiences that choose them, trust them, and return
Audience insight
Brand response
Creator lessons
How do we turn attention into a lasting audience relationship?
African audiences have more choice than ever. They find news through social platforms, video, creators, search, messaging and increasingly AI. The challenge for news brands is not simply to reach more people, but to give them a reason to choose us, trust us, and come back.
This summit brings research together with practical African experiences. We will hear what audiences are in search of, how leading media brands are responding and leveraging their relationships, and what an influential independent journalist can teach traditional newsrooms about building a loyal following.
The question running through the summit: How do we turn attention into a lasting audience relationship?
Speakers
Hajara Batuuka
Head of Marketing
Nation Media Group
Uganda
Tarun Gangwani
Chief Product Officer
WordPress VIP
United States
Maggie Ireri
CEO
TIFA Research-Africa
Kenya
Zubeidah Kananu
Moderator
President, Kenya Editors' Guild
Kenya
Nwabisa Makunga
Arena Holdings
South Africa
Greg Piechota
Readers First Initiative Lead
United Kingdom
Fisayo Soyombo
Founder and Editor-in-Chief
Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ)
Nigeria
Key themes
Discovery is no longer guaranteed: Search, social, AI and creators now decide who finds news.
Reality over assumption: Independent research on what African audiences actually consume and trust.
From page views to audience understanding: Measure what people value, not just what they click.
Reach is not the goal: Give audiences a reason to choose, trust and return.
Storytelling in the AI era: What has changed, what hasn't, and why open matters.
Loyalty proven under pressure: What NMG Uganda's shutdown revealed about trust and rebuilding momentum.
Different audiences, different value: Arena Holdings on serving distinct readers instead of chasing scale.
Trust through voice and transparency: What Fisayo Soyombo's public-interest movement teaches established newsrooms.
From insight to action: Every speaker names one thing to stop, start and watch.
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