“We Don’t Talk About…”

Matt Walsh takes on the sticky subject of “sponsorships, gifting and investments” as it pertains to trail media:

Running media and influencers have professionalised. Brands fund shows, athletes overlap with product development, outlets take on consulting work, and creators build real businesses hawking gels and AI training plans. None of that is surprising, and none of it is inherently negative. The interesting bit is how the presence of money subtly shapes the edges of the conversation.

It’s worth reading the entire article and Matt is way too kind to the various personalities he clearly speaks of but never directly calls out.

Running media doesn’t lose credibility because money is involved, it loses it when the presence of money quietly shrinks or loudly amplifies what gets talked about. Small signals of context can do a surprising amount to reopen that space.

He also addresses the reality that, well actually, mentioning sponsors and financial ties is already required by law.

These laws set the floor for transparency, not the ceiling for editorial range. An industry can be compliant (although I’d argue we’re not the best at it) and still develop predictable blind spots simply because relationships, access, and formats influence what feels worth saying.

We, in the trail media, gotta be more transparent and honest if we want to keep our credibility.