Insight Shapes News

Technology used to feel neutral. Infrastructure choices were seen as operational decisions handled by IT teams. That assumption is now being challenged.
In this episode of Insight Shapes News by Kilkaya, host Nils Ove Håland Riise speaks with Endre, a technology strategist and founder of the initiative Choose European, which maps European software alternatives and promotes greater digital sovereignty.
The conversation explores why technology infrastructure is increasingly becoming a strategic question for news organizations. As AI accelerates, cloud platforms consolidate power, and geopolitical tensions influence technology ecosystems, decisions about vendors, models, and infrastructure can directly affect independence, cost structures, and long-term flexibility.
Endre explains why the idea that technology is neutral is fading. Infrastructure providers control data flows, AI capabilities rely on massive datasets, and dependency on a small group of global platforms can create strategic vulnerabilities for publishers and companies.
The conversation examines what realistic alternatives look like. Rather than framing the choice as Europe versus the US, Endre argues for hybrid strategies that combine global innovation with diversified infrastructure, open-source technologies, and regional providers.
For media organizations, this shifts technology from a procurement decision to a leadership responsibility.
🎧 Topics we cover:
Why technology is no longer politically neutral
How AI is accelerating infrastructure dependency
The strategic risks of vendor lock-in in cloud and AI platforms
Why newsroom technology decisions belong in the boardroom
Digital sovereignty and what it actually means in practice
How publishers may be repeating the same dependency pattern seen with search and social
Why hybrid infrastructure strategies may become the norm
The role of open-source technologies in reducing strategic risk
Why Europe is seeing a renewed push for sovereign AI and cloud infrastructure
How media organizations can start diversifying their technology stack
If you work in newsroom leadership, editorial strategy, product, or technology, this episode explores why infrastructure decisions may become one of the most important strategic choices facing media organizations in the coming decade.
🎧 Subscribe to Insight Shapes News for conversations on journalism, AI, personalization, subscriptions, and the structural changes shaping the news industry.

Chapters:
00:00 The Shift in Tech Control and Societal Development
00:16 Andre Dingsør's Perspective on Digital Sovereignty
00:44 The Changing Nature of Technology as a Geopolitical Tool
00:56 Biggest Underestimated Tech Risks for News Publishers
01:04 Technology and Trust in Journalism
01:25 What Newsrooms Need to Understand About Tech Changes
02:00 Andre Dingsør's Background and Focus on Sovereignty
02:12 The Political Shift in Tech Infrastructure
04:03 AI as an Accelerator of Geopolitical Power
05:47 The European Response to Tech Sovereignty
08:55 Dependency on US Tech and Social Media
10:00 European Cloud and AI Solutions for Media
11:36 Influence of Infrastructure on Editorial Independence
12:58 Bias and Control in Large Language Models
15:07 Trust and Data Security in AI and Cloud
17:29 The Cost Wave of AI Infrastructure
19:35 Migration Challenges in Tech Stack Dependencies
20:50 Building Digital Sovereignty Through European Solutions
23:35 Europe's Viable Alternatives to US Tech Giants
26:43 US Tech Mindset and European Market Dynamics
28:21 Balancing Global AI Leadership with Responsibility
29:41 Using Hybrid Models for Cost and Sovereignty
33:30 Local Language Models and Cultural Nuances
35:09 Practical Steps for News Publishers on Tech Sovereignty
39:11 The Future of Rebalancing Global Tech Power
40:18 Leadership in the Age of Technological Change
42:29 The Role of Media in Crisis and Information Dissemination

What does it take to lead journalists through uncertainty, resistance, and constant change?
In this episode of Insight Shapes News by Kilkaya, host Nils Ove Håland Riise speaks with Jeremy Clifford, former Editor-in-Chief of one of the UK’s largest media organisations and now a leadership coach working with newsrooms.
Jeremy argues that the demands placed on newsroom leaders have shifted significantly. Editors are expected to manage AI adoption, interpret data, drive subscription growth, and guide teams through restructuring and uncertainty. Many were promoted for their journalistic ability rather than for leading people.
The conversation examines where leadership most often weakens: unclear communication, misalignment between strategy and daily priorities, reluctance to address performance issues, and insufficient preparation for handling resistance to change.
Jeremy outlines practical approaches from his coaching work, including how to structure performance conversations, how to establish authority without needing expertise in every technical area, and how to maintain trust during restructures.
The discussion also addresses how data and AI influence editorial decision-making, and why leaders must operate with incomplete information while remaining clear in direction.
🎧 Topics we cover:
Why newsroom leadership struggles during transformation

The difference between editorial skill and leadership capability

A structured method for handling difficult conversations

How tone and communication shapes newsroom culture

Leading journalists who resist strategic change

Managing trust and morale during restructuring

The balance between authority and influence

How data and AI affect decision-making

The importance of clarity under pressure

Whether leadership can be developed

If you work in newsroom leadership, editorial strategy, or product, this episode offers a focused discussion on how leadership shapes organisational outcomes.
🎧 Subscribe to Insight Shapes News for conversations on leadership, personalization, subscriptions, and structural change in journalism.

Take your Leadership Readiness Assessment test from Jeremy:
https://assessment.chrysalis-leadership.com/

Chapters:
00:00 The Need for Quality Leadership in Newsrooms
02:49 Navigating Change and Digital Transformation
05:16 Building Effective Leadership Skills
08:00 The Importance of Leadership Tone
11:07 Earning Influence in a Newsroom
14:01 Selecting the Right Team Members
16:50 Handling Difficult Conversations
19:33 The Role of Empathy in Leadership
22:06 Communicating Change Effectively
25:05 The Impact of AI and Data on Leadership
27:45 Values and Trust in Leadership
30:24 The Challenges of Leadership Under Pressure
33:10 The Evolution of Leadership in Newsrooms
35:59 The Future of Leadership with AI
38:47 Navigating Data in Leadership
41:48 The Importance of Clarity and Authenticity
44:31 Connecting with Staff in High-Pressure Situations
47:06 Is Leadership for Everyone?
49:52 Self-Reflection and Growth in Leadership
52:50 Final Thoughts on Leadership Challenges

How should personalization work in journalism when trust, fairness, and editorial responsibility are at stake?
In this episode of Insight Shapes News by Kilkaya, host Nils Ove Håland Riise speaks with Christoph Schmitz, Product Manager at Schibsted Media and lead of Curate, the content recommendation system used across several of the largest news brands in the Nordics.
Christoph has worked with content recommendation for a long time. In this conversation, he explains how personalization is applied in practice inside a large media organization, and where the real risks appear when editorial judgment, algorithms, and audience behavior intersect.
The discussion focuses on why segmentation models borrowed from advertising often fall short in a journalistic context, how dominant audience groups can shape recommendations in unintended ways, and why adding more data does not automatically lead to better outcomes. Christoph also shares how collaborative filtering is used at Schibsted, why it relies on reading behavior rather than tags or assumptions, and what its limitations are.
A central theme throughout the episode is the role of the homepage. We explore why readers see different stories, why this can be difficult to explain internally, and why the very top of the page still carries editorial meaning even as personalization expands elsewhere. Christoph introduces the idea of the homepage as a shared reference point — a place where readers understand what matters at a given moment, whether they read every story or not.
🎧 Topics we cover:
What personalization means in an editorial context
Why segmentation introduces structural bias in news recommendation
How dominant user groups influence what journalism gets visibility
Collaborative filtering explained through real newsroom examples
How demographic data can reduce model performance
Personalization as a tool for fairer distribution of journalism
Why readers see different versions of the homepage
The editorial role of the homepage top
Why news products should not be designed like social platforms
The “bonfire” metaphor and its relevance for shared public understanding
Why personalization requires gradual, incremental change
If you work with personalization, content recommendation, homepage strategy, or editorial-product collaboration, this episode offers a detailed and experience-based look at how these systems function in reality, and what needs to be handled with care.
🎧 Subscribe to Insight Shapes News for conversations on journalism, personalization, and the strategic choices shaping the news industry.
Chapters
00:00 The Risks of Personalization
02:47 Understanding Personalization in Media
05:32 The Evolution of Personalization Models
08:10 Collaborative Filtering and Its Impact
10:54 The Role of Demographics in Personalization
13:35 Challenges in Personalization for Newsrooms
16:25 The Importance of Content Pool for Personalization
18:41 The Misconceptions of Personalization
21:17 The Future of Personalization in Journalism
24:22 The Role of Desk Editors in Automated Systems
26:59 The Concept of Liquid Content
29:32 Building a Personalization Team
32:04 Measuring the Value of Journalism
35:06 Visualizing a Personalized Homepage

Research paper on personalization and long-term reader engagement:
https://arxiv.org/abs/2510.09136
INMA case study:
https://www.inma.org/blogs/ideas/post.cfm/personalising-the-front-page-isn-t-just-smart-it-s-fair

Trailer photo credit: Foto: Mathias Broe.

Why do people really pay for news in 2025 — and what keeps them paying month after month?
In this episode of Insight Shapes News by Kilkaya, host Nils Ove Håland Riise sits down with Dominic Grzbielok, Head of Paid Content s at Süddeutsche Zeitung (SZ). Dominic is a former journalist turned product leader who has spent the last 15 years living in the intersection of newsroom culture, product strategy, and subscription growth.
SZ has set an ambitious north-star: fund the entire company through digital subscriptions by 2030. That goal shapes everything — from what the homepage looks like, to how paywalls work, to what metrics matter most. Dominic shares how SZ is evolving from reach-first thinking to serving loyal subscribers, why churn is the ultimate truth, and how habits — not hacks — are the real retention engine.
We also dive into the most heated questions publishers face right now:
Should personalization climb higher on the homepage?
Do dynamic paywalls beat hard paywalls?
And in a world of AI answers and LLM distribution… do we still need a homepage at all?
🎧 Topics we cover:
Why people subscribe to news — and why “feeling informed” beats raw content

The 2030 goal: going all-in on digital subscription revenue

Why revenue matters more than subscriber counts (and the danger of discount addiction)

The homepage as front door and brand signal — with 3/4 of it paywalled

How SZ introduced hybrid personalization (editorial top, algorithmic modules below)

What it takes to earn editorial trust in personalization: dashboards, rules, fast fixes

The single most important metric

Habits that retain: newsletters, podcasts, quizzes, games, and serialized content

Bundling as a retention strategy — including SZ’s winning sports bundle with Kicker

Why regional mega-bundles are harder in Germany than in the Nordics

Dynamic paywalls: promising, but not worth the complexity yet

AI distribution and licensing: partner, don’t panic — but don’t give away the brand

The future for small publishers: specialization, local dominance, and cost discipline

Dominic’s biggest lesson: the best products happen when journalists, designers, and PMs build together

If you’re working on subscriptions, personalization, homepage strategy, or trying to navigate the AI-era business model shift — this conversation is a grounded, practical walk through what it takes to build a subscriber-first newsroom without losing your soul.

What happens when competitors share their most sensitive numbers — and build one common truth instead of competing dashboards?

In this episode of Insight Shapes News by Kilkaya, host Nils Ove Håland Riise talks with Bente Håvimb, Project Manager at MBL (the Norwegian Media Business Association), about Medietall — the shared measurement system that unites nearly every Norwegian publisher under one set of trusted audience data.

We dive into why transparency matters in an era of declining ad revenues, how collaboration on data helps publishers compete with global tech giants, and what makes Norway’s news market a “unicorn” in the eyes of international observers.
🎧 Topics we cover:
Why openness and shared standards build trust between publishers, advertisers, and readers

How Medietall measures reach, subscriptions, and behavior across 190+ titles

Why “apples to apples” data lets Norwegian media stand stronger against Big Tech

The unique Norwegian mix: high subscriptions, direct traffic, and logged-in users

How advertisers actually use these numbers — and why many still default to global platforms

What success looks like for Medietall: stability, quality, and constant adaptation

The road ahead: video, audio, AI, and measuring trust as the next big KPI

If you want to understand how collaboration can turn competitors into allies — and why a transparent, shared dataset is becoming the strongest weapon against Big Tech dominance — this conversation offers a rare look behind the numbers that shape Norway’s media industry.
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🎧 Subscribe to Insight Shapes News for conversations on the future of journalism, personalization, and the strategies shaping the media industry.

Chapters
00:00 The State of Norwegian News Media
05:38 The Importance of Data Sharing in Media
11:19 Trust and Collaboration Among Publishers
17:14 Advertising Value and Media Reach
22:58 Unique Aspects of the Norwegian Media Market
28:49 Future Outlook for Media and Data
34:36 Challenges and Opportunities Ahead