Trust as a Strategy

No. 123 — MARCH 12, 2026

Trust as a Strategy

Hello, everyone,

In a fragmented media landscape, trust no longer depends solely on editorial quality. It is also built on how a media outlet understands its audience, makes its commitments transparent, and aligns its business model with its editorial mission.

That’s the question we’re exploring in this issue, drawing on examples such as the BBC, Contexte, and El Salto—and one that Francesca Festa addressed this week in Florence at the Voices festival. We’re sharing the presentation materials from her talk, which focused on a key issue: how to build trust with your audience?

These observations also echo several of our recent publications: in the face of mounting legal and political pressures in several European countries, economic independence is no longer always enough to protect newsrooms.

On the studio front, we’re also looking back at the launch of the new 60 Millions de consommateurs website, whose digital redesign we helped oversee.

And as always, in this issue you’ll find a few highlights from the ecosystem: new media outlets, a club that’s already full, ideas from the back of the mind… and good reasons to come visit us in Brittany.

Enjoy the read,

MARINE DOUX, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF OF MÉDIANES

The Strategy

Ideas for Your Media

In a fragmented media landscape, trust no longer depends solely on editorial quality, but on the alignment between marketing, design, and the business model. Today, there are three key drivers that enable these principles to be translated into concrete actions.

Understanding Your Audience: The Foundation of Trust

Trust begins with a deep understanding of one’s audience. Media organizations such as the BBC have structured their strategy around a user-centered model, which helps identify audience motivations and tailor editorial content accordingly. This approach combines regular surveys, usage analysis, and qualitative data to understand what truly matters to readers. By aligning editorial formats and angles with these needs, newsrooms enhance the relevance of their content and foster audience loyalty.

Accessibility: Making Trust Visible

Design plays a key role here. At Contexte, editorial commitments and transparency are directly integrated into the user experience—both on the website and in how the offering is presented to subscribers. This visibility transforms editorial principles into concrete elements of the value proposition. When embraced and made visible, transparency thus becomes a powerful driver of credibility and can also enhance the commercial appeal of a media outlet undergoing rapid international expansion, with the launch of its English-language vertical, Power.

A business model that safeguards integrity

The business model, too, can build trust when it aligns the media outlet’s interests with those of its audience. In Spain, El Salto takes this approach a step further with a cooperative structure based on the “one member, one vote” principle, where members participate directly in the media outlet’s governance. In these models, reader funding also becomes a mechanism of governance. The audience does not merely support the content; it contributes to the sustainability and direction of the editorial project.

For more information, check out the presentation materials (in English) from Francesca Festa, Director of Development at [organization name]Médianes, at the Voices Festival in Florence.

From the studio's perspective

A GLANCE AT A SUPPORTED PROJECT

60 Millions de consommateurs has been providing independent information to consumers for more than fifty years. The publication approached us with a clear goal: to modernize its digital experience and make it fully mobile-friendly, without confusing its audience.

To achieve this, we first conducted an assessment of the existing site, including an audit, benchmarking, and analysis of user journeys. This work guided the redesign of the visual identity and page architecture.

The new website now offers a smoother browsing experience and places greater emphasis on reviews and comparisons, which are at the heart of the publication’s identity.

Are you thinking about the digital transformation of your publication or creating a website? Learn more about our expertise.

CHRISTELLE PERRIN — MÉDIANES, THE STUDIO

On Our Radar

What We're Reading Right Now

A certain je ne sais quoi

THE GUARDIAN / ALEXANDER HURST

Lovers of magazines and glossy publications are setting their sights on… France. The Guardian describes a sector that is under pressure but thriving, featuring publications such as Kometa, Glitz, Revue21, La Déferlante, Usbek & Rica, and Le Cri. Despite repeated predictions of its demise, print remains a testing ground for editorial innovation that continues to generate strong interest, supported by a network of bookstores and newsstands.

A Look at the Local Press

REPORTERS WITHOUT BORDERS

A recent RSF report on local news highlights the challenges undermining this sector: media closures, “media deserts,” concentration, and, more recently, the proliferation of plagiarized content generated by AI. At the same time, independent local initiatives are launching and innovating, such as Splann, Marsactu, Le Poulpe, and Pays, co-founded by Médianes and Manon Boquen, who is interviewed in the report.

Our Latest Posts

It's homemade

The Indie Press in the Spotlight

OWEN HUCHON

Violations of press freedom are no longer isolated incidents. In its report, OFALP documents 91 cases in 2024. Behind these reports, an economic reality is emerging: for independent media outlets, every legal proceeding and every act of intimidation can become an existential threat.

Economic independence is no longer enough

MARINE DOUX

The crisis facing the press is not only economic—it is also political and legal. While the independence and resilience of the media have long depended on the strength of their financial model, European newsrooms are now operating in increasingly hostile environments and facing abusive legal proceedings that can prove fatal.

In Brief

THAT WAY, YOU'LL KNOW

1. Contexte, StreetPress, Le Monde: These media outlets are hiring. Check out their job openings.

2. Gaze, a “feminist perspectives magazine,” in partnership with [...]Médianes, has launched its Club—conceived as a peaceful space for creative women to meet—and it’s already full!

3. Before tote bags and stickers, matchboxes were used for advertising. Here’s a whole archive of them to inspire you—and, why not, to revive the practice for your media outlet.

4. Discover the news organizations taking the stage to share their stories of journalism through this map of initiatives.

5. On April 11 and 12, we’ll be in Rennes at the Festival des Médias Indés, organized in partnership with the Fonds pour une presse libre. Shall we meet there on Friday for the screening of *Les 3 Ours*?

See you on Monday!

for the next edition

We’ll be back on Monday with the latest issue of our industry newsletter, Les 10 Liens, and on March 26 with our edition of Coulisses. Haven’t subscribed to all our publications yet? Update your preferences so you don’t miss them!

On en profite pour souhaiter la bienvenue à toutes celles et ceux qui nous ont rejoints récemment, dont les équipes d’Imagine, de Tempura et de la Fondation Cartier.

Until then, take care of yourselves and your social media.

This newsletter was prepared by Marine Doux and Owen Huchon, together with the team at Médianes.

Médianes

We are a media outlet, a studio, and a network dedicated to independent journalism.