TODAY to merge with CNA to become digital long-form weekend magazine

Digital media outlet TODAY will be merged with the CNA digital newsroom from 1 October. Following the merger, TODAY will become a digital long-form weekend magazine of CNA, according to a statement by Mediacorp. 

This move will see TODAY become the digital long-form weekend magazine of CNA. This merger will allow the best of TODAY to be served via CNA’s digital platform to the significantly larger CNA audience both in Singapore and overseas.

TODAY will focus on producing analytical features on current issues under the well-regarded Big Read brand; ground up news features; engaging human interest interviews; as well as opinion pieces every weekend to supplement CNA’s current suite of daily digital offerings.

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This will help to grow CNA’s traffic and deepen its engagement, particularly on weekends.

From 1 October, the TODAY app and website will no longer be updated. All new content will be found on the CNA website and app. TODAY will retain its social media pages, with links pointing audiences to the CNA website, it said. 

“This merger comes in a post-COVID landscape defined by a global surge in news fatigue coupled with active news avoidance. These trends have been exacerbated by changes to the algorithm of selected social media platforms to de-emphasise news by reducing its discoverability,"said Walter Fernandez, editor-in-chief of Mediacorp.

At the same time, the overlap between the TODAY and CNA digital audiences has also increased significantly over the past two years,” he added.

Chief commercial officer Jacqui Lim assured advertisers in TODAY that they would be offered competitive, alternative advertising solutions across the Mediacorp network including the stable of news brands that includes CNA, 8 World, Berita and Seithi.

"This strategic move reflects our long-standing commitment to an audience-first approach for advertisers," she said. "We are constantly refining our offerings to ensure we have an effective range of innovative solutions. Brands and advertisers who partner us can look forward to meaningful and relevant media and content opportunities within our integrated portfolio.”

The merger will not result in any staff cuts and all TODAY staff will be offered roles in CNA, it said. 

TODAY was first launched in late 2000 as a newspaper, with a mission to “Set You Thinking”. Within six years, it was the second-most widely read daily newspaper in Singapore, across all languages, it said.

In 2017, it became the first newspaper in Singapore to embrace a fully digital future, as it discontinued its print edition. Since then, it has gained recognition domestically and abroad as a trusted news brand with an accessible tone of voice, particularly among the youth.

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