Liesbeth Nizet, Head of Future Audiences Monetisation at Mediahuis, Belgium, said that while her role may sound focused on revenue, it’s fundamentally about listening. “Listening to the people who aren’t showing up – to why they feel left out or overwhelmed – and asking, with humility and curiosity: How can we show up differently?”
In conversations with young audiences, Nizet has encountered recurring themes: news often left them anxious, unseen, or disengaged. Some said it “just makes me feel worse,” while others didn’t recognise themselves in the narratives. To Nizet, these weren’t just critiques – they were invitations to rethink journalism’s purpose and audience.
“We can produce the best journalism in the world, but if no one is paying attention or willing to pay for it, our impact will be limited,” she said.
For Nizet, the challenge isn’t chasing trends or viral moments – it’s asking deeper questions: How do we make journalism feel worthwhile? How do we move beyond selling access to news and offer something more – meaning, relevance and, most importantly, belonging?
“Monetisation follows participation. Trust comes before transactions,” she said. “If we want young people to support journalism, we have to make it worth their care – not just ask for their credit card.”
Liesbeth Nizet, and (R) Clémence Lemaistre (Deputy Editor-in-Chief, Les Echos, France).
She outlined what success looked like for Mediahuis in engaging younger audiences, at the recent World News Media Congress in Kraków.
More than metrics: Building trust with Gen Z
Success, Nizet explained, wasn’t measured in clicks alone – it was measured in care. For Mediahuis, “care” meant being seen and felt by a generation that had long tuned out. Audience growth was a key indicator, but not in the traditional sense of chasing virality. The company focused on whether it was showing up meaningfully on platforms like TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat and YouTube – not just being present, but earning attention from those who had previously written journalism off.
Another critical measure was conversion – turning off-platform engagement into loyal subscribers and members within Mediahuis’s own ecosystem. But just as important as external growth were internal shifts: the company tracked its ability to attract and retain young journalistic talent, recognising that the future of journalism depends as much on the next generation of creators as it does on the next paying reader.
To support this, Nizet and her team developed what she called a “youth-friendly engagement funnel” – a model that begins with inspiration and leads to excitement, belonging, support, and eventually, fandom. Trust and relevance weren’t soft values – they were metrics that shaped every strategic choice.
Credit: Liesbeth Nizet (Head of Future Audiences Monetisation at Mediahuis) and Danuta Bregula (Managing Director Paid Products, Ringier Axel Springer Polska, Poland)
Turning insights into impact
One of the biggest misconceptions, Nizet said, is that Gen Z doesn’t care about news. The truth is more nuanced: “They do care. They just care differently. They want journalism that explains without condescension, that feels fresh but still has depth, that sounds human – not corporate,” she said.
“When young journalists told these stories, they brought with them a native understanding of their generation’s humour, habits and concerns. So this isn’t journalism for Gen Z – it’s journalism with Gen Z,” she added.
Nizet outlined four core pillars that shaped the Mediahuis’ work with younger audiences:
1. SPIL – an editorial proposition for Gen Z: Mediahuis created a brand-new product built from scratch, by Gen Z, for Gen Z. It reflected their perspectives and offered interaction, community, and co-creation. “Journalism as a conversation,” said Nizet. The newsroom is fully staffed by young talent, influencing hiring and talent development across the organisation.
2. Off-platform strategies: Mediahuis helped its brands show up where young people already were – with platform-native, video-first content that aligned with brand values and audience expectations. Hyperlocal storytelling played a key role in fostering trust and belonging.
3. Sense-making journalism: The aim was not just to be seen, but to be felt – offering clarity, different perspectives and a place in the broader conversation.
4. Future audiences learning platform: Mediahuis built an internal ecosystem to share knowledge and lessons – including a weekly newsletter, best practices, and a space for cross-brand collaboration.
“If we’re not learning together as a group, we won’t move fast enough,” she said.
Mediahuis has also actively collaborated with creators, publishers and innovators already reaching young audiences, aiming to accelerate its own learning. “This work isn’t about ego. It’s about getting better, faster, together,” Nizet said.
“It’s not about making cool content”
Nizet said Mediahuis was not just competing with other publishers, but with all content on young audiences’ screens. The company tested and experimented with content formats that were platform-native and journalistic – not clickbait or promotional snippets.
While off-platform engagement served as a hook, Mediahuis aimed to bring users back to its own products over time. “We forget fleeting clicks. We’re here to build relationships that last. So this isn’t about making ‘cool content.’ It’s about proving that news can be relevant, engaging – and yes, profitable – in a world where attention is fragmented and trust is hard to win,” she said.
Nizet called on other publishers to take the same leap, not by chasing trends, but by rethinking what they offer audiences.
“Gen Z has already given us a playbook: don’t talk down – talk real. Be relevant. Be transparent. Be human. Gen Z wants journalism that shows up, that listens, that tries.”
