"But while recent years were defined largely by financial hardship, the profession took some body blows from a new place in 2025: the federal government. Still, press freedom wasn't the only story that defined the media - or that captured our readers' attention - this year. Read on for some journalism success stories, reexaminations of longstanding myths and legends, surprising moments of "personal news" (as we like to call it), generational divides and classic memes that reveal just how much the industry has changed."
"These reflect a mix of what you read most, what sparked the most conversation and a handful of pieces our editors couldn't stop thinking about, presented in chronological order. Thanks for reading Poynter this year. Oh, the panic I felt a few years ago when an editor left handwritten notes on my desk and I couldn't remember what "stet" meant. (It stands for "let it stand," a copy desk way of saying, "My bad, please ignore this edit.")"
Press freedom emerged as the central throughline for journalism coverage in 2025. The federal government delivered significant new pressures against the press, adding to prior years' financial hardships. Journalism also recorded successes, reexamined longstanding myths, and generated moments of personal news, generational divides, and viral memes that reflected industry change. Poynter curated top stories based on readership and conversation, presented chronologically. A popular glossary of journalism terms, including "stet" defined as "let it stand," frequently resurfaced in analytics. Local reporting examples included competitive Baltimore newsrooms pushing each other to do deeper, better reporting.
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