#21 The King Is Dead. Do We Switch Off Personalization in News? Christoph Schmitz at Schibsted

Some news is too important for anyone to miss. Does that mean everyone should see the same homepage?

“The king is dead” has long been Nils’s example of a story in demos for personalization with news publishers and broadcasters, that must stay at the top, regardless of what an algorithm thinks a reader wants. It raises a question at the heart of news personalization: when one story matters to everyone, where does personalization belong?

In this episode of Insight Shapes News by Kilkaya, host Nils Ove Håland Riise welcomes back Christoph Schmitz, Product Manager for Curate, Schibsted’s content recommendation system.

Together, they explore how editorial judgment and personalization work during major breaking news. Christoph explains the different layers of editorial control: deciding which stories can appear, what everyone needs to see, and where recommendations can help readers find relevant coverage.

The conversation also challenges what reading behaviour tells us. Following every World Cup story doesn’t necessarily make someone a lifelong football fan. How quickly should recommendation systems forget yesterday’s interests?

And towards the end, Christoph raises a question that could change how newsrooms work: what would a fully personalized homepage look like if editors couldn’t pin stories, but still retained editorial control?

🎧 Topics we cover:

• Should personalization be switched off during major breaking news?
• What editors control before an algorithm recommends anything
• Why the homepage remains a shared reference point
• Designing for occasional readers, not just the most active users
• Why recommendation systems need to forget
• Preparing news products for sudden traffic surges
• A future with editorial control, but without pinning

For anyone working with homepage strategy, personalization, or newsroom product development, this episode explores how to balance what matters to everyone with what matters to each reader.

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