Representatives of several European national news agencies discussed on Wednesday, at the Delphi Economic Forum, the growing pressure journalism faces from the speed of information, social networks and shifting consumption habits among young audiences. The session Trust and Accuracy in a Rapidly Changing Media Landscape underscored that news agencies are undergoing rapid adaptation, where collaboration, transparency and proximity to younger audiences are becoming essential to maintaining trust in journalism.

AGERPRES Director General Claudia Nicolae, a member of the Board of the European Alliance of News Agencies, spoke about the profound transformation the media sector is going through, and the need for agencies to rethink how they reach audiences. In her opinion, the major challenge is no longer access to information, but its relevance for younger generations, for whom traditional news formats are no longer appealing.

She explained that AGERPRES has an extensive photographic archive of approximately five million images - on film and glass - dating back to 1927. In order to bring photography closer to the younger generation, the agency developed a project to convert archival photos into NFTs (non-fungible tokens) and put them on the market to test public interest.

''The results were immediate: in 15 minutes, 35 archive photos were sold, including images from Michael Jackson's concert in Bucharest and from the communist era, content young people were unfamiliar with. This proved something important: young audiences are interested in content, but this must be brought into their environment. It is our responsibility. We cannot wait for them to come visit our sites. It is us who must reach out to where they already are. Apart from the informative role, news agencies also have an educational responsibility, in forming a generation capable of distinguishing between verified information and manipulative content,' detailed the AGERPRES Director General.

Nicolae also addressed the balance between speed and accuracy, noting that AGERPRES applies strict verification and correction procedures, including transparent marking of errors, when they occur. 'Publicly owning up to errors contributes, in the long term, to strengthening trust,' she pointed out.

In the same debate, Andreas Frangos, Chairman of the Cyprus News Agency (CNA) Board of Directors, stressed that in smaller societies information spreads faster and is more difficult to control because of strong informal networks. In this context, he noted that false narratives can move quickly between private communication channels, social networks and the public sphere.

He argued that instruments such as the EU's Digital Services Act and the Media Freedom Act are moving in the right direction, as they target algorithms and content-amplification mechanisms without interfering with editorial freedom. Press freedom is non-negotiable, he emphasized, but warned that the current model of digital platforms - where viral content is amplified regardless of accuracy - poses serious challenges.

Yusuf Özhan, Vice-President and Editor-in-Chief of Türkiye's Anadolu Ajansi, dismissed the idea that accusations of bias are an anomaly in journalism, saying they are common and, to some extent, inevitable when reporting facts that are not convenient for all the sides involved.

He underlined that journalism is done by humans, which means experience, but also mistakes and adjustments along the way. Özhan said that what may later appear as an error or lack of neutrality is sometimes a matter of timing - information unavailable at the moment of publication or the emergence of new information that changes the context. Therefore, he said, constantly updating content is a natural part of modern journalism, especially in today's fast-paced environment. Assuming responsibility and ensuring transparency when correcting errors are key to maintaining a news agency's credibility, he added.

The debate was moderated by Aria Agatsa, President of the Board of Directors of Greek agency ANA-MPA.

The Delphi Economic Forum, now in its 11th edition, runs until Saturday and brings together representatives from 70 countries. AGERPRES (RO - writing by: Mariana Ionescu; EN - writing by: Simona Klodnischi)