A Preview of My 2024 Media Prediction

Here's a sneak preview of my annual guess at what the year ahead holds in store for news media.

Hey everyone! Parker here.

Each year, Nieman Labs publishes predictions for the year ahead in media. I’ve contributed to it for the past few years, and my track record has been pretty decent, if I do say so myself.

I predicted that 2023 would take us to new heights in moral panic about LGBTQ people (given the uproar over Dylan Mulvaney/Bud Light, right-wing media’s campaign of terror against Target employees, and the NHL’s decision to ban “Pride Tape” in response to backlash, I think I nailed this one). I predicted that 2022 would be the year that the press either saved or doomed democracy (I think my argument was strong, but not enough happened in the press to tilt that either way). And I predicted that 2021 would be the year that mainstream news outlets would find themselves “treating Trump as a leader in temporary exile as opposed to a powerless retiree;” this was spot-on).

I just submitted my 2024 prediction. I’m not sure when it’ll end up being published at Nieman Labs, but you’ll be able to find it and predictions from others in media here when it does.

Today, I’m giving paid subscribers to The Present Age early access to my 2024 prediction. If you’re not yet a paid subscriber, this is a great time to upgrade, as annual subscriptions are still 20% off for the first year now through December 1.

(You can also sign up for the free trial of the paid version of the newsletter, but just be sure to cancel before the trial ends.)