Posted:
by QW+ staff writer
Who will carry your message when you’re not in the room?
Welcome to 2026, where Africa is still the youngest continent on earth, and the number of Africans under 25 is now so large that it’s basically shaping the future of everything.
For QW+, we see this in the context of the new post-journalism world, where young people everywhere forgo traditional news brands in favour of platform-native news from creators, commentators, and micro-influencers.
Does this mean that Al Jazeera’s influence has been replaced by news forwarded on WhatsApp?
Yes and no.
In South Africa, more citizens might receive news from YouTube or TikTok than from a printed paper, but in Ethiopia, we find it’s a little more complicated. Internet restrictions or shutdowns might mean young people rely on radio or word-of-mouth for their news. And anywhere in Africa, news might be received very differently on one side of the digital divide compared to the other.
For QW+, these rapidly changing dynamics mean we need to look hard at assumptions that carried us previously.
For the last five years, we’ve worked on the premise that amplifying women+ voices in news provided those same voices with an “in” amongst the corridors of power.
A journalist chooses women+ expert → expert gets quoted → decision-makers take that expert seriously.
But now, we’re seeing how voice amplification can split along at least two power tracks:
One: Institutional power, which, by and large, is still vested in traditional corridors: major newsrooms, legacy journalists, institutional think tanks in government, international NGOs, academia and business. This track is slow, hierarchical, and still gatekept.
Two: Network power, found largely on social platforms, shaped by news “sense-makers”, and shared along micro-networks. This track is fast and is driven by emotion, identification, and belonging. It has the ability to force the institutional power track to respond. (A recent example of this second track disrupting the first comes from Kenya.)
In an effort to best this second power track, we’re seeing legacy power scrabbling to exert money, state machinery, and/or punishment: in other words – all their legacy structural strengths. We’re seeing them variously dismiss it (“not serious news”),co-opt it, or clamp down on it – hard.
But legacy power cannot claw back the agenda-setting power that comes in a world where likes, shares, and forwards determine what captures attention, what is seen as credible, and who and what can mobilise people to act.
New parallel corridors are fast appearing next to the old ones, sometimes lighting fires under their very feet.
What does this mean for women+ experts in 2026 who want their voices to be taken seriously?
QW+ suggests four things:
1. Stop thinking “journalists OR creators”, and find a two-channel strategy
- Ongoing credibility in institutional news spaces, especially radio, with its critical cross-digital divide reach
- And new visibility and clarity in networked creator spaces
2. Treat creators as political actors, not “media-lite”
Some creators might well be sensationalists, but others are thoughtful explainers or watchdogs for matters in their purview. It’s up to you to work out the difference, fast, and choose who you like, comment on, and lend your thoughts to.
3. Be quick, clear, and quotable.
In 2026, this means articulating your key message and exactly why it matters without any jargon. And offering a strong “hook” into current news trends as well as a takeaway that can survive being clipped down without losing sense.
4. Hold boundaries firm.
In 2026, if you’re interrupting legacy/patriarchal narratives, you will not be treated like a neutral commentator. Be prepared with a sense of a) what you won’t engage on, b) what messages you’ll repeat to hold your line, and c) with a coherent digital safety strategy and fallback plan.
In 2025, QW+ asked our community to use their voices to get published and quoted.
In 2026, we’re asking:
- Are you thinking seriously about how narratives move, about who moves them, and about how to stay intact while speaking truth into public space?
- Can you answer the question, “Who will carry my message when I’m not in the room?”