The news industry is undergoing a significant transformation, moving from a linear TV dominance to a multi-platform landscape where audiences expect quick, tailored content. Craig Wilson, Avid's product evangelist for video and media, offers unique insight, having experienced this shift firsthand both as an Avid customer and as a team member. At the 2025 NAB Show, Wilson highlighted Avid's longstanding commitment to news, emphasizing the role of iNews in traditional broadcasting. He also noted Avid's "end-to-end solutions approach," integrating products like Isis storage and NewsCutter into streamlined workflows.
The rise of social and digital platforms has led many broadcasters to create separate teams, often resulting in duplicated resources and inefficiency. Wilson observed that these digital and broadcast teams frequently work independently, even attending the same events without coordination. This "battle for eyeballs" necessitates a more efficient approach, and Wilson advocates for a story-centric method, where a single narrative is crafted for various platforms.
Avid's acquisition of Wolftech in late 2022 introduced collaborative, mobile-friendly planning, assignment, and messaging tools. Wilson stresses the importance of intuitive tools, noting that reporters will naturally gravitate towards simpler systems. Wolftech’s “smart publication points” enable content tailoring for multiple platforms, using AI to generate initial summaries, while maintaining human oversight. The upcoming integration of Wolftech with Avid's MediaCentral platform aims to create a unified environment for all aspects of news production.
Wilson anticipates a hybrid approach to cloud adoption, with some tasks, such as studio operations, remaining on-premises, while others benefit from cloud-based browser tools. Avid's recent AWS integration for Media Composer exemplifies this strategy. Collaborations with tools like Cutting Room, a web-based editor, further demonstrate the shift towards browser-based functionality for everyday news editing. The challenge lies in maintaining a consistent editorial voice across platforms while strategically leveraging each for maximum engagement and monetization.
European broadcasters are refining this multi-platform approach by tailoring stories for specific demographics and platforms while maintaining reusability of content. Despite revenue challenges, Wilson emphasizes the vital role of local news and sees advanced workflows as crucial for its survival. He concludes that while Avid provides powerful tools, successful integration depends on newsrooms adapting them to their specific needs and audience.