OMNITEC staff prepares "trending reports" and "anticipatory reports." Trending reports typically track a single issue over a period of time ranging from one week to one month. They include a summary of how frequently an issue is being covered by news sources and any developments or changes in how the issue is being reported and being received by the public (tonality). One of the biggest challenges is knowing how and when to limit the quantity of news stories that are reviewed and included in the reports. There is so much news and opinion coverage of global affairs that only a representative sampling can be reviewed for inclusion. In addition, front-office officials only want to see what they need to know; they do not have time to review pages of supplementary information. This is where good judgment comes into play. By narrowing down the number of stories that are included in each report, OMNITEC's media analysis team is able to do a better job of keeping the public affairs staff aware of what is most important right now.

Beyond the trending reports, preparation of the anticipatory reports is even more challenging. With a staff functioning on a 24-7 basis, OMNITEC is often tasked to look ahead and comb through the various news sources to identify fast-breaking, up-and-coming stories that are beginning to garner an increasing level of attention and significance. The objective is to anticipate what the press and public would be talking about in the coming hours and days-"the next big story"-so that Cabinet level Secretaries and public affairs officials in our Government will not be caught unaware of a topic that suddenly captures the attention of the public. This requires extensive experience and expertise with previous news-cycle developments and an ability to spot "stories that have legs." Taken together, the trending reports and anticipatory reports that OMNITEC develops, transforms the role of media analysis services-moving clients away from the normal responsive stance to a pro-active posture in relation to information gathering, news processing, and reporting.