What major themes will we see in global media in 2022? What should we see more of?

A new year is near, and while the world has continued to grapple with moving beyond COVID-19 and its effects, what new themes will 2022 surface? Journalists, media executives, columnists, commentators, and media critics—from the US and around the world—offered McKinsey their perspectives on what will make the news, from climate change and misinformation to the growing role of artificial intelligence and global supply-chain challenges. And, critically, what is unlikely to merit the headlines we all ought to see more of in the coming months.

What’s covered most in global media and what’s most pressing are rarely in sync. So what themes will persist in 2022, and what new threads need to emerge?

McKinsey Global Publishing’s Raju Narisetti asked dozens of journalists and media leaders around the world for their own perspectives on what’s to come—their personal lens on what’s likely to be covered heavily in 2022, and what issues might fly under the radar.

They were asked to mull two big questions:

  • What business, economics, or policy story or theme do you predict will dominate media and grab our attention in 2022?
  • What topic do you think will be under-covered, and why does it merit more of our attention?

Explore all the individual responses, which don’t necessarily reflect the view of the news organizations these contributors represent, and have been condensed for length. Each response is designed to be shared individually, if you’d like to.

And what about you? Is there a business story or theme that you feel should get more attention in 2022 than it might in the media? Let us know by writing to Raju Narisetti at newideas@mckinsey.com.

Acknowledgments

This interactive experience was written and led by McKinsey Global Publishing’s Zachary Enco and Torea Frey. It’s brought to you in a collaborative effort from Mike Borruso, Vanessa Burke, Sean Conrad, Matt Jennings, Stephen Landau, Philip Mathew, Myron Shurgan, Sarah Thuerk, Duane Tomaszewski, Petra Vincent, Nathan Wilson, and Joyce Yoo. And a special thanks to S. Mitra Kalita for her help.


Raju Narisetti is Leader of McKinsey Global Publishing.

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