A bit of a personal take to start. I've been a hack, a flack, and a hack again. In 2005, after a TV news run that took me through BBC's India Business Report, foreign affairs with Saeed Naqvi, business and policy daily news with ABNi-Dow Jones, and Business AM — Doordarshan's first daily business show — I crossed over to PR, working in public health for the better part of a decade. Then PR started changing faster than I wanted to follow. So I crossed back. Digital journalism is where I've stayed since.
That round trip gives me a particular vantage point on the hack-to-flack pipeline — and right now, post AI, it's a pipeline that's getting busier. The fear of shrinking newsrooms and AI are partly driving this move as are better salary options in PR.
But first some indicative global numbers
Workforce intelligence firm Live Data Technologies recorded more than 2,800 journalists moving into brand editorial roles between January 2016 and January 2026 — and the curve sharply accelerates after 2022. While it was not immediately clear which region these numbers refer to, it does track with the trend Stacker CEO Noah Greenberg has been chronicling in his weekly roundups.
The money. A recent Fortune magazine piece (Feb 2026) put hard numbers on the demand side: Anthropic is hiring a head of product comms at $400,000; Netflix is listing a senior director of comms at up to $1.2 million; OpenAI has two heads of comms openings near $430,000. Lower down the ladder but still significant: Hinge's editorial director role at $223,000, Ramp's head of content at $200,000+, Adobe's "AI evangelist" at $200,000+.
The proportion. The most rigorous academic finding to date — Reinardy and Zion's 2020 study in Journalism Practice, recreating Australia's New Beats research for the US — found that 40% of journalists who left the newsroom moved into communications, PR or marketing, the single largest destination. Strikingly, 36% still identified as journalists after the move
1. High-Profile Transitions (2025–2026)
These moves highlight newsroom to communication
- Gaurav Laghate (Mint to Sony Pictures Networks India): In September 2025, Laghate joined SPNI as the head of PR and corporate communications, reporting directly to MD & CEO Gaurav Banerjee. By January 2026, his mandate was expanded to include corporate brand, signaling that SPNI views communications as a core pillar of its brand identity in the competitive OTT and broadcast landscape.
- Nupur Acharya (Bloomberg to Adfactors PR): In April 2026, Acharya joined Adfactors PR as senior VP. A veteran financial journalist with over 15 years at Bloomberg and CNBC TV18.
- Arijit De (Business Standard/Financial Express to Adfactors PR): In January 2026, De took on the role of director at Adfactors PR. A former mumbai bureau chief at Business Standard, his transition reflects the demand for journalists who have spent decades tracking India’s largest conglomerates.
- Amit Mukherjee (DD India to Adfactors PR): In April 2026, Mukherjee (formerly lead planning & output for DD India at Prasar Bharati) joined Adfactors PR as group head.
- Rozelle Laha (HT Media to ZETWERK): In April 2026, Laha joined the manufacturing unicorn ZETWERK as corporate communications lead, bringing over 15 years of editorial experience from Hindustan Times to the new-age industrial tech sector.
- Romit Guha: Moved from The Economic Times (after 28 years in journalism) to become the head of corporate communications at Bharti Airtel.
- Startup Hires: Many "founding member" roles in the communications teams of Indian unicorns are now held by former reporters from The Ken, YourStory, or Moneycontrol.
2. Industry Absorption: Where are they going?
In 2026, the movement is concentrated in sectors where narratives are complex:
| Industry Sector | Why Journalists? | Notable Hires (2025-26) |
| Media & Entertainment | Transitioning to "Corporate Brand" roles to manage global OTT/Broadcast identities. | Sony Pictures Networks India |
| Strategic Consultancies | Agencies are building internal "Newsrooms" to offer editorial-grade content. | Adfactors PR, Weber Shandwick |
| Industrial Tech & SaaS | Manufacturing and B2B tech firms need journalists to simplify "Viksit Bharat" narratives. | Zetwerk, L&T Realty |
| New-Age Mobility | Fast-paced regulatory and public perception management. | Ola, Castrol India (EV division) |
This trend suggests that while the "newsroom" is shrinking in traditional terms, the "Editorial Lens" is becoming a sought-after asset in Corporate India.
Let's hear from India's journalists who have made the shift from journalism to PR.
Journalism teaches you to ask the right questions; PR pushes you to anticipate them
In 2024, Saloni Singh moved from Times Internet to head media relations at PR firm Comms Credible. This is after 15 years in journalism at national media houses such as India Today and Network 18.
It hasn't been a cakewalk. Singh shares, "The biggest shift is in mindset. It’s a challenging transition. Coming from journalism, there’s a strong pull to return - sometimes from your own comfort zone, sometimes from others who don’t fully understand the shift. But the ones who stay, who push past that discomfort and commit to evolving, are the ones who truly grow into the role."
Singh advises, "If you’re making the move, do it with the intent to build and lead. This isn’t a detour - it’s a discipline that demands sharper judgment and greater ownership. The fundamentals - storytelling, curiosity, news sense - remain, but the responsibility expands. You’re no longer just telling stories; you’re accountable for how they take form and where they land."
She concludes, saying, "Pace is familiar, but leadership is about balancing speed with alignment. Relationships deepen too - from building sources to sustaining long-term partnerships within the same media ecosystem."
As a reporter you are an individual superstar
Akansha Pradhan moved to corporate communications from media organisations, including 'The Times of India', in 2008. Pradhan, now EVP- reputation, communication & sustainability, Star Health and Allied Insurance, points out, "Two things to note when you move from journalism to strategic communication are that one, you now need and can see the elephant, per se, from all sides. It can be very humbling to realise how myopic the external viewpoint could have been.
Secondly, you’re possibly a strong voice in your newspaper. Still, in the corporate world, you need both that same strength and integrity alongside a clear appreciation and understanding of the business needs. Acting like an ostrich once you see the full picture will take you nowhere."
In a last bit of insight, Pradhan says, "Today’s world needs CCOs. A good CCO builds teams, builds consensus and steps aside to let her team members grow. As a reporter, perhaps you are used to being an individual superstar, but the future belongs to a leader who can build teams."
PR needs business understanding and institutional intelligence
Shveta Srivastava, a strategic communications professional & former journalist, admits that the biggest shift is moving from asking questions to being responsible for answers.
Srivastava, who has worked with Marie Claire India, Femina and India Today, says, "As journalists, we are trained to push, investigate, and challenge institutions from the outside. In strategic communications, you are suddenly inside the system, dealing with incomplete information, competing priorities, legal realities, business pressure, and public scrutiny all at once. You begin to understand how layered communication decisions actually are.
Therefore, you need business understanding and institutional intelligence. A strong strategic communicator needs to understand how leadership thinks, how organisations make decisions, where reputational risk comes from, and how the same message lands differently with media, employees, investors, regulators, and consumers."
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