Earned media now most important media type in the PESO Model® for improving AI discoverability, finds new report

Earned media has emerged as the most important media type in the PESO Model® improving AI discoverability, according to a new report from D S Simon Media.

The “Earned Media in the AI Era” report surveyed 168 PR executives working at agencies, brands and nonprofits. The key finding: 44% of respondents selected earned media as the most important tool in the PESO model for AI discoverability. This was 42% higher than the next pick, paid media. Owned was third at 19% with shared at 5%.

“AI is disrupting the traditional way we think about the PESO Model®,” says Doug Simon, CEO of D S Simon Media. “Not only is earned media most important but optimizing your earned media to be found by the LLMs is critical.”

The research shows nearly unanimous agreement about the value of earned media in the AI era. 99% said it’s important to increase earned media campaigns for AI discoverability and 89% of respondents described earned media as important compared with every other PR and marketing tool. They are putting their money where their new priorities are. 52% say more than half of their AI discoverability budget goes toward earned media.

“PR professionals are clearly recognizing the connection between earned media and AI discoverability,” says Simon. “We are seeing that in our 20% increase in earned media campaigns for clients.”

The report also found a confidence gap between agencies and brands. Overall, 87% of agency respondents feel they have been successful optimizing earned media for AI discoverability, compared to 59% for brands. More than one-third of brand respondents say they are not doing a good job optimizing their earned media for AI discoverability.

The biggest barriers differ between the two groups. For agencies, the agency/client relationship is the top challenge, cited by 50% of respondents. For brands, lack of clear measurement ranks first at 44%. Getting teams on the same page and lack of expertise are also significant barriers for both agencies and brands.

“The research shows there is still work to be done,” says Simon. “Agencies and brands need to align on goals, measurement, and strategy. The organizations that figure this out will be better positioned to compete for attention in an AI-driven discovery environment.”

The survey was conducted by D S Simon Media in August 2026. A total of 168 responses were collected through SurveyMonkey from PR executives working at agencies or in-house for brands and nonprofits.

Note: The PESO Model® is a registered trademark of Spin Sucks.