As a communications, content and media strategist, my primary responsibility is towards my clients and their brands; thus, the success of the strategies we present is firmly rooted in our comprehensive understanding of media and their ecosystems, including data, audiences and capabilities.
Two weeks ago, in a meeting with a senior communications strategist from one of our global partners, he mentioned that Fox News has only 100 000 viewers. I thought that couldn’t be accurate, and it wasn’t.
Fox News had 2.4 million viewers per day in 2024, 1.5 million in total day viewers and 2.8 million in primetime viewers in January 2025, surpassing CNN and MSNBC combined.
In South Africa, traditional TV viewership has faced challenges. According to the Marketing Research Foundation’s (MRF) Marketing All Product Survey (MAPS), 60% of participants watched terrestrial TV within seven days in Q1 2024, up from 54% in Q4 2023.
However, this is still lower than the 73% average in 2021, indicating a shift in viewing habits.
DStv, a major pay-TV service in South Africa, has experienced a decline in subscribers. MultiChoice’s annual report for the year ending March 31, 2024, revealed that active DStv subscribers in South Africa decreased from eight million to 7.6 million over the past year.
This trend reflects the growing competition from streaming services reshaping South Africa’s pay-TV market.
What else does digital report on?
The death of print! In 2024, magazines saw an average quarterly circulation increase of 7.6% year over year. Despite challenges, titles like Huisgenoot maintained a circulation of 86 931, remaining one of the top consumer magazines in South Africa.
Newspapers have taken a significant hit. But after the boom, does Cape Town need four daily newspapers? Or does a country as large as South Africa require three daily newspapers in the same language, all reporting the same news? Especially now, readers choose how, where, and when they consume their news.
The role of radio
Now, the most cherished medium worldwide: radio, in all its guises. Audio consistently outperforms all others regarding awareness, consideration, conversations, and brand loyalty. With marketers vying for consumer attention, 58% of South Africans listen to the radio daily, and 73% tune in at least once a week.
With local powerhouses such as Jacaranda FM (5.6 million online users) and East Coast Radio (4.7 million online users), brands are certainly not short of options when it comes to reaching attentive audiences of all ages.
Both these broadcasting brands continually innovate within their multi-platform ecosystems, enhancing consumer and brand experiences.
The digital revolution & the ‘rumour mill’
Finally, we have what can still be seen as the new kids on the block—digital. They are every marketer’s favourite child and what I jokingly refer to as the rumourmongers.
The first rumour our digital partners began circulating about 15 years ago was that print is dead. It was a clever strategy, and let’s be honest, they would never run out of space to repeat this rumour endlessly for years. And it nearly worked, but print is still here.
Digital had to carve out a budget; brands were not simply going to increase their media spending just because a new medium appeared. Therefore, it had to siphon off budget.
Then digital generated another rumour—that it is the most cost-effective medium. However, the truth is that it’s becoming one of the most expensive, simply because there is so much of it!
With over five billion people using social media, Instagram has a reach rate of 4.00%, while Facebook stands at 2.60%. Engagement rates vary, with TikTok leading at 2.63%, Instagram at 0.50%, and Facebook at 0.07%.
As for paid content, great digital platforms can have 500 000+ unique browsers each month. Yet, so can a media ecosystem, and they also claim their print edition has a circulation of 20 000. As a marketer, you may want eyeballs on your content, and lots of them.
However, you do not realise that the digital platform features 100+ articles right on the homepage, and every day, they filter down to sub-pages. Each article, including your content, may only receive around 300 views, even with banners and newsletters (all at an additional cost for promotion).
So what is my point?
The point is that the devil is in the details. Traditional media has transformed and embraced technology to the degree that it has captured audiences and consumer personas of all demographics while maintaining its reputation for trust, integrity and consistency.
New kids on the block—digital, social media, and user-generated content—will always have their place in the content mix and are integral to every brand strategy. But they should never form the entirety of the strategy. Many leading brands around the world are reducing their digital budgets and reassessing their strategy.
Now you know why.
The question is, what will be the next rumour coming out of cyberspace?
As the founder and managing director of Paddington Station Inc., Paul W Reynell has led the agency to unparalleled success. Under his guidance, Paddington Station became the sole agency in its category to be honoured with both the prestigious Gold Presidential PRISM Award for PR and Communication Advancement and the 2023 Gold PRISM Award for Best Small Agency Of The Year. The same year, the agency stood out as the most awarded small agency.
