Narrative Intelligence: Media vs Public Narratives | webinar recap and key insights

In an oversaturated media landscape where attention is scarce, understanding narrative intelligence has become a must-have skill for strategists, marketers, comms, and insights professionals. Pulsar’s recent webinar “Narrative Intelligence: Media vs Public Narratives” delved into this emerging field, discussing why moving beyond traditional social listening is critical. Michael Brito (Global Head of Data & Intelligence at Zeno Group) and Pulsar’s co-founder Francesco D’Orazio explored how comparing media narratives with public narratives can reveal the hidden forces shaping public opinion. The session underscored a new approach to social listening that’s not focused on raw mentions or sentiment, but on the stories and beliefs that drive conversations and consumer behavior.

From social listening to narrative intelligence

Standard social listening – counting brand mentions, tracking sentiment, tallying share of voice – has long been the norm. But as Michael Brito noted, these metrics often reduce analysis to “very tactical” insights and miss the bigger picture. In the webinar, Michael argued that we’ve outgrown the era of merely monitoring mentions. Narrative intelligence is about elevating that work to a strategic level: understanding emerging narratives, the context behind the numbers, and what those narratives mean for a brand or issue. “The idea of narrative intelligence...takes the work we’re already doing and makes it more strategic,” Brito explained, “to the point where we can walk into a boardroom... and say, ‘yeah, there were 15,000 mentions, but we see a narrative brewing about our CEO’”. In other words, it’s not enough to know how much people are talking – you need to know what story is being told.

One big critique of old-school social listening is its reliance on surface-level outputs like sentiment scores or word clouds. Michael confessed, “If I never had to look at a word cloud again, I would be happy… word clouds aren’t useful at all”. His point: simply visualizing frequent words or counting mentions provides zero context about why people feel a certain way. The webinar reinforced that brands must expect more from their data. Rather than settle for basic dashboards, today’s insights teams should demand tools that uncover deeper meaning – the narratives, themes, and connections underlying the data. This shift from volume to value is at the heart of narrative intelligence. It enables analysts to connect the dots between disparate conversations and discern the why behind public opinion trends, not just the what.

Media vs Public Narratives: When Storylines Diverge

A core theme of the webinar – and Pulsar’s narrative intelligence approach – is comparing media narratives vs public narratives side by side. Why? Because what the press is saying and what the public is saying aren’t always aligned. “The media has an agenda, the public has a different agenda, and therefore the narratives don’t necessarily correlate between the two,” noted Francesco. Sometimes traditional media outlets push a storyline that fails to gain traction among everyday people. Other times, a narrative born on social media will explode among the public before the mainstream media catches up. Whether these narratives diverge or converge is itself highly insightful – it “tells you a lot about what’s happening in society,” Francesco explained.

During the discussion, Michael shared that using Pulsar’s Narratives tool to compare news coverage vs social discussion often reveals significant gaps. “In many cases, you’re gonna find narratives that don’t exist in social that exist in the media, and vice versa. And to me, that is intelligence that brands need to know,” he said. For example, a company might discover that while news outlets are focused on a product’s financial story, the public conversation has fixated on an unrelated issue – a disconnect that could pose a reputational risk if ignored. Conversely, a grass-roots narrative gaining steam online (say, a budding customer sentiment or a meme) might be a blind spot for media-focused teams until it’s too late.

By examining media vs public narratives in tandem, narrative intelligence helps organizations spot these discrepancies early. This opens up both opportunities and risks. On one hand, if you see the public driving a narrative that the media hasn’t picked up, there’s an opportunity to address it proactively or even leverage it in messaging. On the other hand, if media narratives are running ahead of public sentiment (or vice versa), a brand could be caught flat-footed. The webinar emphasized using narrative intelligence to bridge this gap. When you know how a story is playing out in press coverage and on social channels, you can craft communication strategies that resonate on both fronts. Instead of one-size-fits-all messaging, you can tailor your approach: perhaps correcting a false narrative circulating in social spheres, or amplifying a positive story that the media is championing but consumers haven’t heard yet.

Connecting the dots: narrative clusters and trajectories

One of the most powerful capabilities discussed was identifying how multiple narratives connect and evolve over time. Francesco explained that narratives rarely exist in isolation; they form interconnected clusters of beliefs. For instance, he noted an emerging narrative about “the UK being in a downward spiral,” which is linked to narratives about rising crime, falling house prices, and Britain’s standing in Europe. In narrative intelligence analysis, these would appear as a cluster – distinct storylines that reinforce each other to shape a broader public sentiment. When one narrative in the cluster surges, the related ones often move in tandem.

Understanding these connections is key for strategists. Francesco described why connecting narratives is so important: it “gives us a graph of the belief system behind that narrative and allows you as an organization to decide what is the best entry point for me to join this conversation and say something useful”. In other words, by mapping out a network of narratives, brands can pinpoint which specific story (or underlying belief) to address first for maximum impact. If several negative narratives are linked, tackling the root narrative can cause a positive chain reaction across the cluster. Likewise, if you’re looking to insert your brand into a cultural conversation, identifying the central narrative within a cluster of positive stories can amplify your message more effectively than addressing a lone trend.

Equally critical is monitoring the trajectory of a narrative. Is it gaining momentum or fizzling out? The webinar highlighted that the rate of change in narrative volume is a signal of whether you need to act. “If the trajectory is flat, obviously there isn’t a lot for you to do,” Francesco noted. “But if the trajectory is increasing… then it’s quite clear that you need to act”. Narrative intelligence platforms now allow analysts to track how narratives rise and fall over time, much like one would track stock prices. By measuring narrative momentum, brands can prioritize which stories to engage with. A fast-rising narrative (positive or negative) might warrant an immediate response or investment, whereas a stable low-level narrative could be monitored passively.

AI Unlocking New Insights (Qualitative at Scale)

Driving this evolution from basic social listening to nuanced narrative intelligence is the advancement of AI and analytics. The speakers touched on how modern AI – particularly natural language processing and large language models – makes it possible to analyze qualitative data at a quantitative scale. In the past, identifying narratives across millions of posts and articles was a herculean task. Analysts either relied on comparatively simpler methods (like keyword counts or manual reading) or exported data to run their own models offline. Now, platforms like Pulsar’s Narratives AI do the heavy lifting, clustering billions of social media posts and news articles daily into emerging narratives. This means insight teams can get a narrative brief – a summary of key narratives and their metrics – in seconds, rather than spending weeks sifting data.

The result is that human analysts are freed to apply imagination and strategy rather than getting bogged down in data wrangling. Francesco observed that for years the industry was stuck in a loop of low expectations: users only expected basic charts from their tools, and toolmakers didn’t push the envelope, leading to “stale analysis”. AI is breaking that loop by removing friction and inspiring users to ask more ambitious questions of their data. Quoting Terry Pratchett, that Fran shared: “People think that stories are shaped by people. In fact, it’s the other way around.” Narratives shape how people think and behave, and now AI gives us the means to detect those narratives rapidly. This evolution is turning what used to be a labor-intensive exercise into an agile, ongoing practice. For marketers and researchers, it means narrative intelligence can be integrated into real-time decision making – from campaign planning to issue monitoring – rather than treated as a special one-off project.

Use Cases: From Strategy to Crisis Management

Throughout the webinar, MIchael and Francesco illustrated several use cases where narrative intelligence trumps traditional social listening. A few key applications stood out:

• Identifying Emerging Risks: By monitoring narratives, companies can catch early warning signs of a potential PR crisis. For example, a sudden uptick in a negative narrative (e.g. a conspiracy theory or a customer backlash theme) is a red flag to intervene before it spreads widely. Narrative intelligence equips teams to spot these “fringe” storylines in their infancy and respond with targeted communication or corrective action.
• Understanding Public vs Media Focus: As discussed, comparing media and public narratives helps PR and comms teams know where to align or correct course. If the media is driving a narrative that the public isn’t buying into (or vice versa), strategy can be adjusted. For instance, if the news media emphasizes your company’s financial performance but public conversation centers on your environmental impact, your narrative strategy should bridge that gap by addressing the audience’s real concerns. Knowing both sides ensures you’re not caught off guard by a one-sided perspective.
• Informing Marketing and Content Strategy: Narrative intelligence isn’t just for crisis management; it’s equally powerful for proactive marketing. By identifying which stories resonate with audiences, brands can create content that taps into those narratives. One insight from Pulsar’s approach is finding the “cultural seed” of a narrative – an idea that transcends platforms and regions. If you discover a core narrative driving interest (for example, a growing belief in sustainability or a nostalgic trend in pop culture), you can craft campaigns, stories, or products that align with that narrative. This helps ensure your marketing messages hit a meaningful chord, not just a trendy hashtag.
• Strategic Positioning and Thought Leadership: For insights and strategy teams, narrative intelligence provides a compass for where the public’s head is at. Michael mentioned how he uses narrative analysis to help clients “see around corners” on big societal issues. Whether it’s emerging chatter about new regulations, sustainability, shifting opinions on DEI (Diversity, Equity & Inclusion), or evolving views on technology, understanding these narratives allows companies to position themselves proactively. Brands can become thought leaders by speaking to narratives that matter to their audience, rather than reacting late or sticking to their own agenda. In essence, it’s a way to align business strategy with the pulse of public opinion.
• Data-Driven Decision Making in Comms: Finally, narrative intelligence elevates the role of communications and social media teams. No longer are they just reporting the number of mentions or a sentiment graph; instead, they can brief leadership on why something is trending and what underlying belief it reflects. This positions comms professionals as strategic advisors. As Michael put it, recognizing these narrative signals and understanding their implications is “intelligence that brands need to know” at the executive level. It moves the conversation from “our brand had X positive mentions this week” to “here’s the story forming about our brand and where it might lead.” That’s a game-changer for making communications decisions and demonstrating value beyond vanity metrics.

Beyond Mentions and Sentiment – The Next Frontier

The webinar wrapped up with a clear message: narrative intelligence is the next step for anyone looking to elevate their social listening practice. In today’s fast-moving culture, competitive advantage comes from spotting and shaping narratives, not just tracking sentiment. “While everyone obsesses over analytics on things like sentiment and topics, the real competitive edge lies in spotting and leveraging the narratives flowing through public opinion,” says Francesco. By combining quantitative precision (how big, how fast a narrative is growing) with qualitative storytelling (what the narrative actually means), narrative intelligence allows brands to capture the “direction of travel” of public opinion and put a number on it.

For marketing, communications, and insights leaders, this approach represents a powerful evolution beyond the basics of mentions and sentiment. It means having your finger on the why behind consumer conversations and media coverage. It means anticipating which stories could lift or sink your brand. And it means being able to confidently guide strategy with insight into the beliefs shaping your market. In summary, narrative intelligence turns social listening from a reactive exercise into a forward-looking strategy. It’s an emerging discipline that Pulsar and thought leaders like Michael are positioning as essential for staying relevant and proactive. As brands seek to move from data overload to actionable insight, narrative intelligence is enabling them to focus on what truly matters – the narratives that define public opinion – and to lead those narratives rather than follow them. This isn’t the end of social listening; it’s the new beginning, where understanding the story is just as important as measuring the sound.

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