News Corp Australia will allow readers to personalise their news with the rollout of new features from the publisher which mimic social media platforms.
My News Feed allows readers to personalise their news by postcode and follow individual journalists, topics, and subtopics. The features will be available on the company’s websites, mobile sites and on apps of the state-based, regional, and community mastheads in the coming weeks.
News Corp says My News Feed was developed over the past year following a research project that showed what audiences expect from news platforms.
“We’re really combining old-fashioned boots-on-the-ground reporting with the very best technology we believe is available in today’s media market,” says News Corp Australasia executive chairman Michael Miller.
“These innovations deliver subscribers all the news they want, how they want and when they want seamlessly across all devices, whether it’s hyperlocal, state or international news.”
News Corp has been aggressively pushing its digital transformation since the pandemic, which has resulted in significant job losses and community newspapers closing or moved to print-only titles.
Miller says the My News Feed will help local and regional journalism by allowing readers to follow individual mastheads and journalists. He added that the technology was a “definitive evolution” from the significant changes the company has made over the past year.
“We’ve repositioned ourselves to ensure we’re less complex for audiences and advertisers and we’ve done this through our targeted investment in digital innovation,” he says.
“My News Feed and My Local provide consumers with a frictionless and personalised experience and is a significant step in realising our digital future.”
Julian Delany, chief technology officer, says the multi-stage rollout had already seen the mastheads become “less congested” and more user-friendly.
“Our technology is nuanced enough so that you can, for example, get stories about specific subtopics such as Collingwood Football Club but ignore all other AFL coverage,” Delany says.
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