As US President Donald Trump's diplomatic push into Asia reshapes relations across the region, N3Con 2026, a major media conference opening in Bangkok this week, will put US-Asia tensions and China's growing influence squarely on the agenda.
The event will also canvas the hottest trends shaping Asia's news industry, from artificial intelligence (AI) in the newsroom to climate reporting and press freedom.
The New.Now.Next Media Conference (N3Con 2026), organised by the Asia Chapter of the Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA-Asia), runs from May 21 to 23 at Chulalongkorn University (CU). Now in its 16th year, the event also marks the 30th anniversary of AAJA's Asia chapter.
One highlighted session, Beyond the Headlines: Understanding US-Asia Relations in a Fractured World, will address how journalists can continue to report independently on US-China dynamics at a time when newsrooms on both sides of the Pacific face mounting political pressure. Panellists include John Liu, executive editor of Bloomberg; Jing Yang, Asia bureau chief of The Information; and Patrick Barta, international enterprise editor of The Wall Street Journal (WSJ).
The session will also examine how the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East are redrawing Asia's geopolitical map — and what that means for journalists covering the region.
A separate session, In China's Shadow: Reporting on Environment, Power and Influence in Southeast Asia, will look at the environmental consequences of China's deepening engagement with the Mekong region, where Beijing's influence now extends well beyond trade into resource management and ecological impact.
A further workshop, The Asia Tech Beat: Covering Asia's Rise as a Global Tech Power, will focus on the challenges of reporting on a region that has moved to the centre of the global technology stage. From AI investment in Hong Kong to South Korea's semiconductor surge, speakers including Jing Yang and Dake Kang, chief investigative correspondent for Greater China at The Associated Press (AP), will offer tools and strategies for navigating an increasingly complex beat.
Other sessions will cover AI in the newsroom, climate collaboration, journalist safety and career development.
A dedicated AI strand will include panels on ethics and regulation, data storytelling and what audiences expect from journalism in an age of automated content.
Jodie Ginsberg, chief executive of the Committee to Protect Journalists, and Eric Wishart, standards and ethics editor at Agence France-Presse (AFP), will lead discussions on harassment, violence and digital security facing journalists across Asia.
Visit the N3Con 2026 official page.
