CEOs and Board Directors View News Media as Powerful Advertising Tool to Influence Key Stakeholders and Say Brand Safety is Overapplied, Reveals Stagwell Future of News (STGW) Study

Global Economic Outlook - Fewer than half of CEOs and Board Directors expect the global economy to improve in 2025, with 42% predicting improvement, 35% expecting stagnation, and 23% anticipating a decline [8] - Only 36% believe inflation will ease in 2025, while 35% foresee no change and 29% expect worsening [8] - Just 33% foresee improvement in geopolitical and military conflicts in 2025, with 41% expecting no change and 26% predicting escalation [8] News Media and Advertising - 90% of CEOs and Board Directors follow the news closely, reading an average of six articles per day [8] - 83% believe news media raises awareness of critical issues, 81% think it can positively influence society, and 79% consider it critical to democracy [8] - 86% of executives say companies should advertise on news media, and 87% view it as a sound investment to reach and influence stakeholders [8] - 75% of executives believe their companies should advertise in news more, compared to just 7% who want to scale back [8] Brand Safety and News Industry - 84% of CEOs and Board Directors say their organizations apply brand safety protocols, but 57% think it is a mistake to apply them across all news outlets and types of news content [8] - 69% believe brand safety protocols are overapplied to the point of hurting media outlets and advertisers, with 75% of executives from large companies sharing this view [8] - The Future of News Initiative aims to reinvigorate the relationship between news and marketing through research, events, and informed discussion around brand safety [3] Industry Events and Initiatives - Stagwell will host programming at the World Economic Forum 2025, including a News x Democracy panel with AG Sulzberger of The New York Times and Mark Penn of Stagwell [6] - The company will also host a Cocktails and Conversation event in partnership with The Washington Post to celebrate collaboration and innovation in shaping the future of news [6] - Stagwell plans to host an inaugural Publisher Showcase with its coalition of publisher partners at its headquarters in One World Trade Center [7] Methodology and Survey Details - The study was conducted with 1,028 CEOs and Board Directors across 14 countries, including the US, Canada, UK, Germany, France, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, and Thailand [9] - The online interviews were conducted by HarrisX from December 30, 2024, to January 14, 2025 [9]