Experts envision Yle’s next century beyond radio and television

Yle marked its 100th anniversary on Wednesday, and four media and cultural experts told the broadcaster how artificial intelligence, social media and changing viewing habits could shape its future.

Yle began as Finland’s public-service media organisation with broadcasts on radio and television. Its services later expanded to include Yle Areena, Yle.fi and social media channels.

Media consumption has changed significantly since the organisation’s early years. People increasingly get their news from social media, while international streaming companies compete with traditional media for audiences’ time. Artificial intelligence is also still at an early stage of development.

Anu Koivunen: live broadcasts will retain their value

Anu Koivunen, a media researcher and professor at the University of Turku, said Yle could not move entirely onto social media platforms without losing the idea of public-service media.

“Yle cannot survive simply by spreading across every possible new social media platform where video clips are published,” Koivunen said. “That does not match the idea of public-service media, which builds, criticises, entertains and informs society.”

She said Yle should maintain a presence on social media while also developing its own services. One possible future direction could be a new platform where content would be produced by Yle and outside creators, following an idea also discussed by the BBC. Such a service could be a safer alternative to existing social media platforms and comply with European Union data-security rules.

Koivunen said live broadcasts would remain valuable. Sports competitions, the programmes Elämäni biisi and UMK, and the Eurovision Song Contest are examples of content that is difficult to reduce to social media clips, she said.

Leena Virtanen: more political satire

Film and television critic Leena Virtanen said Yle should take greater responsibility for covering and explaining Finland’s history to different generations.

She said Yle had produced historical documentaries, but their quality could be improved. Historical drama, meanwhile, is a genre that is rarely produced in Finland, and she would like Yle to make more of it.

Virtanen also said she wanted to see more political satire from Yle because commercial operators do not produce it.

She said Yle could continue bringing people together through drama and entertainment, but doing so would require investment and high quality. The future of Finland’s film and television industry also depends heavily on Yle, she said, because the broadcaster is a central funder of the sector.

Venla Niinilampi: Yle must invest in social media

Venla Niinilampi, chair of Vostok, a journalism student organisation at the University of Tampere, said Yle needed to continue developing its social media presence to reach younger audiences.

She said the content had to be engaging, with a hook at the beginning of a video to prevent users from swiping past it.

The benefits of social media work may not be immediately visible, Niinilampi said. It could also introduce Yle to younger people as a reliable source of information, making them more likely to turn to the broadcaster later as they become more interested in the news.

Olli Seuri: Yle could challenge superplatforms

Olli Seuri, a journalism adjunct professor and editor-in-chief of the Uusi Juttu media outlet, said news could increasingly be followed through superplatforms or artificial intelligence assistants.

Users might ask such services for the most important news of the day or request news analysis, he said. Seuri added that public-service media were unlikely to become part of international superplatforms.