Insights from a conversation with Sky News presenter Matt Barbet, the latest speaker in our series of Small Talks, events open to PR and comms professionals.
Matt began his journalism career in the basement of ITN, long before social media shaped the news cycle. His first role at Independent Radio News taught him an early lesson he still swears by, when it comes to shaping a story: don’t start at the beginning—start at the most interesting bit.
After years across the BBC, ITV and Channel 5, which included two separate stints presenting Channel 5 News, he made an unexpected pivot into PR, spending six years at Freuds. Now at Sky News, he’s adamant those years sharpened his understanding of messaging, audiences and the pressures comms teams face.
Returning to journalism he says he brings what he calls “a PR sensibility”. By this he means a working appreciation of how stories are shaped on both sides of the media and comms divide.
Today, he’s a self-described “super sub” at Sky News, jumping between The Politics Hub, News at Ten, breakfast slots and weekend shows.
The variety brings both challenges (especially with two teenage daughters at home) and a constant stream of stories to get stuck into.
Audience First: What Journalism and PR Still Share
Matt makes no secret of his generalist news instincts. Throughout his career he’s covered politics, war zones, natural disasters, and his fair share of lighter “and finally” stories. The common denominator for all these topics? Whether people will care enough to keep watching.
Audience focus, he argues, is where journalism and PR overlap most closely: “If you haven’t got an audience, it doesn’t really matter—you’re shouting into the abyss,” he explained. A story needs talkability and to be relatable – something a viewer might repeat to a friend, a partner, or their mum later that evening.
Authenticity also trumps novelty. As he puts it, the most powerful form of ‘shareability’ isn’t a social media metric—it’s trusted word-of-mouth. PR teams pushing for coverage should remember that good stories land not because they’re clever, but because they connect.
Pitching Stories: Surveys, Exclusives and Trips
On survey-based PR stories, Matt is blunt: they’re a gamble. They cut through only if they are genuinely surprising and land on a day when they naturally fit the news agenda. Relevance beats volume every time.
On exclusives, he’s pragmatic. They matter to newsrooms—but not nearly as much as PRs often assume. The audience rarely cares who broke a story first; they care about truth and clarity.
As for international media trips, Sky will absolutely travel—but they’ll pay their own way to avoid compromised journalism. If the story is strong enough, they’ll come.
Asked whether his PR stint changed the journalist he is now, Matt doesn’t hesitate: absolutely. He understands the pressures on comms teams, the internal stakeholder wrangling and the desire to land key messages. But he’s candid: he no longer reads many press releases.
Instead, relationships matter more—far more. A WhatsApp, a phone call, a quick message from someone he trusts will cut through in a way even the most beautifully crafted press release won’t. And while he acknowledges the role of owned channels in modern comms, he says organisations still come to mainstream news for scrutiny and credibility they can’t generate through TikTok alone.
What Health and Science Stories Will Cut Through
Health stories will continue to dominate in 2026, from weight-loss drugs to preventive healthcare and the growing conversations around men’s mental health. Matt emphasises the power of case studies—authentic personal narratives supported by evidence and expertise.
He also notes a shortage of specialist science and tech journalists across newsrooms. For PRs working in AI, engineering or advanced health research, this is an opportunity: journalists need experts who can explain complex topics simply, accurately and without jargon.
And as debates on assisted dying return to Parliament, issues at the intersection of health, ethics and policy will remain firmly on the agenda.
Nature and Environment: What Resonates
Nature stories resonate most when they highlight something surprising, urgent or emotionally affecting—whether Britain’s depleted biodiversity, rewilding projects or the return of beavers to UK waterways.
While Matt personally cares deeply about nature, he stressed to our audience the need to lift these stories “above the everyday” with clear relevance and strong human connections.
A Final Reflection
Matt’s career across Sky, ITV, BBC and Channel 5 has shown him how storytelling, audiences and engagement evolve—but the fundamentals have stayed the same. Whether you’re a journalist shaping an interview or a PR professional pushing a campaign, success lies in authenticity, clarity and relevance.
And above all, a good story is a good story. If it’s interesting, relatable and memorable, it has a fighting chance—no matter which side of the lens you’re on.
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