Save 50% on a 3-month Digiday+ membership. Ends Dec 5.
We recently wrote the optimist’s take on the state of publishing based on what happened in the past year. In the interest of fairness, the following are signs that publishing is going to hell in a hand basket. Hold on tight.
1. This webpage has 90 ad units.
2.This became a ubiquitous ad tactic.
3. This piece got 1.3 million pageviews.
4. This slideshow got almost 400,000 views.
5. This sponsored content.
6. This presentation was viewed 400,000 times.
7. This was an actual headline in a publication that gets 47 million monthly unique visitors.
Ad position: web_incontent_pos1
8. This story actually ran and was “recommended” 25,000 times.
9. This explained the Egyptian revolution.
10. This chart.
11. And this one.
12. This ad placement.
Ad position: web_incontent_pos2
13. This service exists.
14. This is an SEO tactic.
15. This article was untrue but got 1.5 million pageviews.
16. (Bonus) This 125-word listicle.
More in Media
Digiday+ Research Subscription Index 2025: Subscription strategies from Bloomberg, The New York Times, Vox and others
Digiday’s third annual Subscription Index examines and measures publishers’ subscription strategies to identify common approaches and key tactics among Bloomberg, The New York Times, Vox and others.
From lawsuits to lobbying: How publishers are fighting AI
We may be closing out 2025, but publishers aren’t retreating from the battle of AI search — some are escalating it, and they expect the fight to stretch deep into 2026.
Media Briefing: Publishers turn to vertical video to compete with creators and grow ad revenue in 2026
Publishers add vertical video feeds to their sites to boost engagement, attract video ad spend and compete with news creators.
Ad position: web_bfu