Journalism as an Event with Alexander von Streit

When should events be part of my strategy – and when shouldn’t they?

Events are not a tool for reach, but for building relationships. Their value lies where news organizations want more than just visibility – namely trust, loyalty, and repeat engagement. We reach people digitally, but we encounter them less and less in person. At the same time, content is becoming more interchangeable due to platforms and AI. What becomes valuable is the experience of journalism as a shared experience. This is exactly where events come in. Formats such as the TED Talk-style lecture performance “DOSSIER live” by the Austrian investigative newsroom in cooperation with the Schauspielhaus Wien, the Tagesspiegel’s “Checkpoint” revue, or live podcasts show that journalism has a different impact when people experience it together.

Events are not worthwhile if they are conceived solely as a marketing measure. Without a connection to existing relationship channels, they remain isolated. The crucial question is what part of the relationship with the audience an event is intended to fulfill. If there is no clear answer to this, events are not a strategic tool but merely an additional expense.

How do I integrate journalistic events into my brand strategy?

Events only become strategically effective when they are a genuine part of a media ecosystem. That is why we should introduce a new management tool: the resonance plan. The goal is to make concrete decisions about where and how the editorial team wants to be present in people’s physical daily lives. Such a resonance plan should describe how encounters with the journalistic product take place and how these develop into a lasting relationship. It does not follow a linear event logic but connects several building blocks that must be considered together.

• Target audience: Who do I want to reach, and in what situation in their daily lives? And which of my content is actually suitable for engaging this audience?
• Suitable resonance space: This refers not simply to places, but to social contexts where a public sphere already exists: cafés, theaters, cultural centers, clubs – or  creating a space of one’s own.
• Appropriate format: How do content and location come together to create a concrete encounter? Discussion panels, live podcasts, or readings are typical entry-level formats; more elaborate productions can follow once experience and resources are available.
• Resources and partners: Hardly any medium can scale events on its own. Collaborations help combine reach, infrastructure, and credibility.
• Resonance: What comes of it? An event is not a goal, but a transition point. People must have the opportunity to continue the relationship. Without follow-up logic, events are ineffective.

A follow-up plan is effective when these building blocks fit together: target audience, content, location, format, and follow-up interlock and create recurring engagement rather than one-time attention. The nonprofit organization Headliner, which has been staging the “Reporterslam” format and the “Jive” show for ten years, offers a blueprint for this. Here, the events are not merely a part but the systematically planned core of the grant-supported business model.

How can I tell if my event strategy is working?

The most common mistake is measuring the success of events – like digital channels – by reach. These metrics are easy to track but say little about the actual impact. What matters is whether a relationship is formed.

• The participation rate shows whether there is a basic level of interest. More important, however, is repeat attendance: if people return to events, this indicates a stable connection. Define a clear target for this and review it regularly.
• Then there is conversion. If participants transition in the medium term to newsletters, memberships, or other predefined areas, the follow-up logic is working. A simple funnel logic is helpful: how many come, how many stay, how many move on?
• On-site interaction is equally revealing. Do conversations arise? Do people continue to engage afterward? If not, the format is often too focused on the stage rather than on interaction.

Decisions can be derived from these observations. Formats with high return rates and effective follow-up logic can be expanded. If interest is present but no engagement develops, the dialogue component should be increased. If neither occurs, it makes sense to fundamentally rethink the format or discontinue it.

The key shift in perspective is this: events are not an add-on to an existing strategy. They are a channel in their own right through which journalism re-enters people’s everyday lives. Those who plan them systematically shift the focus from distribution to resonance, thereby creating a foundation on which trust and loyalty can grow over the long term.

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Dernière mise à jour: 10 mai 2026