In June, the Institute for Nonprofit News (INN) surveyed member newsrooms and found that reporters and editors understand that video matters and are trying to produce more of it, but they’re already stretched thin. INN, with funding from Google News Initiative (GNI), will help as many as 50 newsrooms build sustainable video workflows that fit into their existing operations.
People increasingly want to watch the news on their phones. For the first time ever in 2025, more people chose to get their news by video networks and social media (which tilts heavily towards video) than by websites, apps, or TV.
“We found that INN members understand the need to adapt to video, and are doing so – albeit in fits and starts, but they face numerous challenges making video a routine part of their production workflow,” said Network Product Manager Andrew Haeg.
Across the 81 INN member newsrooms that responded to the survey, a key theme came through: Most newsrooms are already making video, nearly all want INN’s help, and time is the dominant blocker by a significant margin.
Survey Findings: What We Heard
Three-quarters of respondents are already making social video — regularly, occasionally or as experiments. Another 19% aren’t producing yet but want to. Only 6% said it’s not a priority.
INN was naturally interested in whether members need help of any kind. 98% of respondents said yes, with 59% being very interested and wanting to be part of an early cohort and 38% somewhat interested.
Time is the dominant constraint by a wide margin. Most newsrooms know how to make videos. The problem is fitting it into a reporting schedule that’s already full. As one editor put it: “We know how to make videos, there simply aren’t enough hours in the day.”
Staffing structure is also a barrier. Video work is typically concentrated in one person, creating bottlenecks and a point of failure. When that person leaves, production often stalls for months. At smaller outlets especially, losing a key staffer can halt the operation entirely.
There are also training gaps. Reporters need support with scripting and editing. But this ranks third because the time problem comes first. Training alone won’t solve a capacity crisis.
The respondents included 81 newsrooms across 33 states, D.C. and Canada. Geographic breakdown: 31% regional (multi-county or metro area), 25% local (single city or county), 22% statewide, 22% national. More than half are local or regional outlets serving single communities or a handful of counties.
A few members raised legitimate questions about platform dependency, ROI, and whether the time investment in social video is worth pulling away from reporting. INN will strive for real answers to these questions throughout the program.
About the program
INN, with funding from GNI, is building a social video production program tailored to the realities of member newsrooms. INN is partnering with Verso, a newsroom AI studio, to do that. The focus is on tools and workflows that fit into existing operations—templates, repeatable formats, and editing approaches designed to reduce the time cost of video production.
“INN is partnering with Verso to listen closely to members and identify ways AI can remove tedious, repetitive steps to lower the barrier to social video production so newsrooms can move from a text article to a produced video in a matter of minutes,” said Haeg.
This social video production program is built for newsrooms where video work often falls to one person, not dedicated teams. But larger, more well resourced newsrooms will get value from it as well, and INN will be choosing a few to become peer trainers. Early cohort members will participate in listening sessions, and work with INN over the next few months to develop and refine these approaches.
