Doug Simon, CEO of D S Simon Media, shares what communicators need to know about how stories are selected and discovered for TV news.
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Podcast Host, Doug Simon is CEO at D S Simon Media. D S Simon Media is a recognized innovator in broadcast public relations and the creator of the industry’s first AI-Powered Broadcast Media Tour™. Clients include top brands in healthcare, technology, travel, financial services, food and beverage, consumer goods, entertainment, retail, and non-profits. Celebrating its 40th anniversary, the firm has won more than 100 industry awards.
Contact Doug at dougs@dssimonmedia.com.
TRANSCRIPT:
DOUG: For 40 years, D S Simon Media has been helping brands get their stories on television. We helped make satellite media tours a hundreds of millions of dollars business. Now we are witnessing another shift in how news decisions are made.
According to our 2026 TV News Producers Report: AI and the Newsroom, 68% of TV news producers say they are more interested in airing a story if it is optimized for AI search. Nearly seven in ten producers are signaling that Generative Engine Optimization influences what gets covered. We surveyed producers and reporters at local television stations nationwide. The findings make one thing clear: AI is no longer just a tool used behind the scenes. It is becoming part of the editorial filter and a significant opportunity to give your earned media a longer tail with AI discoverability.
We found thirty-seven percent of producers are already using AI to identify stories to cover. Sixty percent say their stations are optimizing online content so it can be found through AI search. And when given the choice between two similar story pitches, 68% prefer the one that has been optimized for AI. In other words, if your pitch is not aligned with how AI platforms surface information, you may be invisible before the assignment editor even finishes their coffee.
This is where the shift from Search Engine Optimization to Generative Engine Optimization becomes critical. GEO is about authority, structure, and alignment with the real questions people are asking AI platforms. It requires understanding search intent at a deeper level and building earned media strategies that reflect it. For decades, satellite media tours have been one of the most efficient ways to reach national audiences through local television. In a single morning, a spokesperson can participate in more than 25 interviews across television and radio stations. The format has always worked because it is structured, time-efficient, and responsive to newsroom needs. What is changing is not the format, but the discovery process around it.
As generative search is now a primary way people find information, broadcast content is no longer confined to the moment it airs. Segments live on station websites, social platforms, YouTube channels, and increasingly within AI-generated answers. That reality requires communicators to think differently about how stories are framed. That local TV news remains one of the most trusted sources of information in America, according to recent data out of Pew and Emerson College is an added bonus.
In practical terms, that means paying closer attention to the actual questions audiences are asking AI platforms and ensuring that broadcast storytelling reflects those queries. Pitches, suggested interview questions, and supporting content need to be structured not only for a live interview, but for how that information may later be surfaced, cited, or summarized in generative search environments. The fundamentals of a strong story have not changed. But the ecosystem in which that story is discovered has. The result is not just coverage. It is coverage engineered for discoverability.
Some critics worry that AI optimization could compromise editorial integrity. I see it differently. Producers are under-resourced and operating in a multi-platform environment. If a pitch clearly signals that it is authoritative, relevant, and structured for digital amplification, it makes their job easier. It does not dictate what they cover. It helps them identify stories that are already aligned with audience demand. Certainly, you want to be part of that.
After four decades in this business, I have learned that media strategy is never static. When satellite distribution emerged, communicators who embraced it thrived. When digital transformed newsrooms, those who adapted gained an edge. Today, AI is that inflection point.
The brands and agencies that understand how local news, earned media, and generative search intersect will have a measurable advantage. Those that treat AI as an afterthought risk falling behind, not because their stories are weak, but because they are not structured for how discovery now working.
The takeaways from our 2026 report are straightforward. Newsrooms are adapting in real time. Producers are using AI and stations are optimizing content. And a clear majority say AI optimization increases their interest in a story. If you want to earn coverage in the Answer Economy, your strategy has to evolve with the newsroom.
After 40 years in broadcast PR, I can tell you this: the fundamentals of storytelling have not changed. Credibility, clarity, and relevance still win. What has changed is how those qualities are surfaced and amplified. AI is not replacing earned media. It is rewarding it. And for those willing to innovate, that is very good news indeed.
