The disparity between news stories valued by journalists and those preferred by readers, known as the "News Gap", is well-documented. However, the difference in expectations regarding news related user-generated content is less studied. Comment sections, hosted by news websites, are popular venues for reader engagement, yet still subject to editorial decisions. It is thus important to understand journalist vs reader comment preferences and how these are served by various comment ranking algorithms that represent discussions differently. We analyse 1.2 million comments from Austrian newspaper Der Standard to understand the "News Comment Gap" and the effects of different ranking algorithms. We find that journalists prefer positive, timely, complex, direct responses, while readers favour comments similar to article content from elite authors. We introduce the versatile Feature-Oriented Ranking Utility Metric (FORUM) to assess the impact of different ranking algorithms and find dramatic differences in how they prioritise the display of comments by sentiment, topical relevance, lexical diversity, and readability. Journalists can exert substantial influence over the discourse through both curatorial and algorithmic means. Understanding these choices' implications is vital in fostering engaging and civil discussions while aligning with journalistic objectives, especially given the increasing legal scrutiny and societal importance of online discourse.

Welcome! to Issue One of the Tomorrow's Tech Today newsletter accompanying the podcast series with the full discussion related to this piece available here. The world is looking for organizations who stand for something. Indeed recent research by the Edelman Trust Barometer 2021 shows people now typically trust your business more than their country's government, news media, and even NGOs. So as we reflect on our aspirations and indeed resolutions for 2022 and the'moments which matter' to take forward from last year, the rise in prominence of Sustainability as a core component of business model evolution, alongside – the Diversity, Equality, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) – continuum is personally very much front of mind. Especially building on attending events such as COP26, the Social Innovation Forum, Re:Invent and now CES2022 where this has been center stage.

Microsoft president Brad Smith, Princeton University professor Jennifer Rexford, and Mckinsey Global Institute chairman James Manyika discuss how to ensure AI can be a source for good.