In February 2024, The New Yorker published an article that paints a grave picture of the media industry. Its opening metaphor likens the current state to a herd of dinosaurs awaiting the impact of an impending comet.

The year 2023 alone witnessed 2,681 layoffs across broadcast, print, and digital news media- an alarming reflection of the industry's ongoing decline.

Pressing Challenges

As publishers brace for what feels like an extinction-level event, the forces driving this crisis are no mystery:

• Audiences are overwhelmed by online content saturation

• Social media platforms are increasingly expensive for promoting articles

• Organic reach is dismally low (Meta’s organic reach is under 5%)

• Search engines, powered by AI, often answer queries directly in the interface

• Publisher ad revenue is shrinking while tech giants recover

• Public trust in media continues to erode

  

While top-tier news brands with strong direct traffic still have some breathing room, others are increasingly reliant on third-party traffic, which is unpredictable and diminishing.

So, How Do Publishers Make Money in 2024?

Editorially curated home pages like those of HuffPost, CNN, or Drudge Report still draw direct traffic, but few publishers enjoy such loyalty. Subscriptions remain an option but put publishers in direct competition with digital streaming and entertainment services for the same audience dollars.

When traditional revenue models falter, publishers must embrace innovation. One such innovation? AI-driven video.

Could AI Video Solutions Change the Game?

At the same time media struggles, AI capabilities have surged. Tools now exist that allow publishers to accelerate content creation, tailor experiences, and unlock new monetization paths.

In early 2024, OpenAI launched Sora, a revolutionary text-to-video model capable of generating cinematic, high-fidelity 1-minute videos across various aspect ratios and resolutions. Built on the diffusion and transformer models of DALL·E 3 and GPT-4, Sora exhibits a striking grasp of cinematic storytelling—an AI that doesn’t just visualize text but understands narrative.

This technological leap sets the stage for publishers to tell stories in a more engaging and monetizable way.

Why Video Matters More Than Ever

Video is no longer a bonus—it's a necessity:

• 89% of people watch videos online daily

• 82% have made purchase decisions influenced by a video

• Audiences say video strengthens their trust in brands

For publishers seeking to transform written content into immersive video, Adoriai offers a GenAI-powered video solution built specifically for media organizations. Created by publishing veterans, Adoriai allows rapid, scalable production of editorial-quality video—without sacrificing tone, style, or voice.

Addressing the Revenue Dilemma with Video

Online ads are losing their impact. Banner blindness, short attention spans, and ad blockers make traditional formats less effective. Meanwhile, video consistently outperforms:

• Viewers retain 95% of a video’s message versus 10% for text

• Click-through rates improve by 96% with video

• Videos are 12x more shareable than text and links

• News is the second most-consumed video type on social media

Despite its impact, video still isn’t mainstream in most publisher workflows. Adoriai helps bridge that gap by enabling publishers to embed rich, in-stream branded video experiences directly into existing content, increasing engagement and revenue without overhauling entire systems.

Overcoming Video Challenges with AI

Scaling from a few videos to hundreds presents unique challenges:

• What ad formats should be used?

• How much ad density is too much?

• Where do profitability and user experience intersect?

• How do you ensure compliance with IAB guidelines?

Adoriai’s AI-driven platform simplifies these choices. It automates video generation aligned with your articles, optimizes for ad performance, and supports compliance- all while preserving your publication’s identity.

Video for Content Discovery and Younger Audiences

Gen Z consumes more video than any previous generation and will control a quarter of global income by 2030. For publishers struggling to stay relevant, video may be the most powerful content form.

Adoriai’s AI tools reduce video creation time and cost, freeing creative teams from repetitive tasks and enabling more output with fewer resources. Automation allows even small teams to match the scale of large media houses.

Video as a Strategic Growth Engine

But video for video’s sake isn’t the answer—publishers need an AI-backed content strategy where video is a core component.

With Adoriai, publishers can:

• Convert written content into storyboarded video using minimal input

• Automatically generate media assets based on headlines and article context

• Enable real-time feedback, edits, and monetization optimization

• Produce videos in any format and resolution for any platform

Personalization: A Cure for Reader Burnout

With users exposed to over 10,000 ads and 7 million blogs per day, capturing attention is harder than ever.

Enter personalized video—powered by Adoriai. Videos crafted specifically for each viewer can offer deeply relevant, emotionally resonant storytelling. AI enables both mass customization and personalization at scale, ensuring your content cuts through the noise.

A Step-by-Step Guide to Scalable Video with Adoriai

Step 1: Identify high-performing articles in your portfolio

Step 2: Use Adoriai’s platform to generate videos, customized to your brand and audience

Step 3: Distribute across your website and social platforms

The Future of Media is Video—and AI-Powered

As generative AI and human creativity merge, they’ll redefine how we tell stories and engage audiences. The future will belong to publishers who:

• Use AI to supercharge human creativity

• Focus on data-driven, adaptive, personalized content

• Embrace interactive, dynamic storytelling

• Invest in AI to gain an early mover advantage

Conclusion

The digital media world is in flux- but opportunity lies in disruption. AI-powered video is more than a tool; it’s a competitive edge. Here’s how to stay ahead:

1. Adopt Video AI: Use tools like OpenAI's Sora and Adoriai’s tool to convert text to high-impact video

2. Leverage Video's Strength: It outperforms in engagement, retention, and monetization

3. Embrace a Video-First Future: It’s not a passing trend, but a strategic imperative for survival and growth

Adoriai is here to help publishers thrive not just survive in the new media age.