Media Trend Report 2026 Released: PR Consulting Dentsu Inc. Analyzes "Six Major Changes"

PR Consulting Dentsu Inc. has released the " Media Trend Report 2026: Six Changes the Media Predicts for 2026. "

The company interviewed 25 editors-in-chief and deputy editors-in-chief about "what kind of year 2026 will be." It identified common themes from their responses, conducted its own analysis from a PR perspective, and published the findings in this report. It accurately captures societal shifts likely to occur in the future that media are watching, providing content useful for corporate PR activities.

■About the "Media Trend Report 2026"

PR Consulting Dentsu Inc. has cultivated deep relationships with diverse media outlets through over 60 years of PR activities since its founding.Following the "Media Trend Report 2024" published in 2024 and the "Media Trend Report 2025" published in 2025, this year the company again leveraged its media relations expertise. It interviewed 25 individuals, including editors-in-chief and deputy editors-in-chief from media outlets covering economics/business and fashion/lifestyle, asking them "What kind of year will 2026 be?"The results were uniquely analyzed from a PR planning perspective and compiled as the "Media Trend Report 2026: Six Changes the Media Predicts for 2026."

■The "6 Changes" Revealed by the Media Trend Report
*Excerpted from PR Consulting Dentsu Inc.'s report introduction article

The "Media Trend Report 2026" predicts that amid increasing uncertainty about the future, society will reach a turning point where humanity and small values begin to regain attention.

Change 1: Beyond Acceptance: A Society in Motion and the Evolution of Prosperity
As environmental, economic, and social structures undergo significant shifts, people will align their inner strength and shift toward ways of living that optimize the "present."

Human-centered senses like "kindness, joy, and beauty" and "physicality" will become the core pillars of future society.

Beyond accepting elements of uncertainty, people will begin to move proactively, reconstructing a new form of prosperity.

Change 2: A Return to Humanity - The Power of Words and Bonds of Trust
As AI-driven optimization advances, people are rediscovering the value of humanity.

Trust is shaped by qualities unmeasured by efficiency or speed: personality, personal distance, and the resolution of words.

We find "comforting imperfections" in the serendipity of handcrafted work and empathize with things imbued with human presence.

This revival evokes nostalgia and reassurance, spurring the creation of the next future.

Change 3. AI Economy: A Turning Point in Value Creation
The era of "with generative AI" is finally beginning.

The key lies in "how humans coexist with AI and generate value."

Language is being reevaluated, and experience is elevated to value.

As AI implementation leads to increasingly standardized answers, the key to being chosen—and building trust—will lie in how companies and brands can design experiences that embody their unique identity.

Change 4. Japan's Rebuilding: Chain Reactions of Change, Power of Innovation
Economics alone cannot solve societal challenges, and the world is moving back into an era led by "politics."

In an increasingly divided international community, the creative power of diverse individuals is gaining attention as the key to unlocking the future.

Precisely because we are entering an era of uncertainty where politics, economics, and society are intricately intertwined, restructuring and rebuilding beyond existing frameworks will be essential conditions for new growth.

Change 5. The Power of Hearts and Spaces Shapes the Future
Space exploration technology is being applied to daily life, while intellectual property (IP) is expanding beyond borders to become a universal language connecting people.

Traditional culture is elevated to new experiential value by its custodians, while regional areas are gaining clear value as places to rediscover one's self.

These movements are attracting global attention as "Japanese-style richness."

Underpinning this is the "power of place" that moves people's hearts and creates new value.

Change 6: Connecting and Moving Forward: A Multipolar World
Global economic and cultural leadership is no longer concentrated in a single pole.

Diverse regions—non-American spheres, Europe, the Global South, the Middle East—each possess unique energy, generating new values and growth models.

The economic and cultural realignment brought by this multipolarity will accumulate overwhelming power and lead the next era.

■Click herefor the introduction article and download of the "Media Trend Report 2026"