More data creates new blind spots, report says

Brands are collecting more information across search, social media, news and AI platforms, but are struggling to connect those signals, according to a new report from media intelligence company Cision.

The company’s Data Fragmentation Trap: Why More Data Isn’t Helping Brands See Clearly, published on 6 August, argues that organisations continue to assess channels separately rather than treating them as interconnected sources of information.

Cision describes the resulting cost as a “fragmentation tax”, with disconnected datasets potentially slowing decision-making and making it harder for communications and marketing teams to track changes in public perception.

The report cites Brandwatch’s Marketer of 2026 research, which found that 40 per cent of marketing professionals identify integrating data from multiple sources as their biggest challenge.

“Brands don’t have a data problem; they have a connection problem,” said Jim Daxner, chief product officer at Cision.

The report identifies three consequences of fragmented intelligence: conflicting interpretations between teams and what it calls “narrative drift”, a gap between how a brand intends to position itself and how it is understood externally.

Cision also argues that the growing use of AI will not, on its own, resolve the problem. While AI can accelerate analysis, the company says its usefulness depends on having connected underlying data.

The report uses the rise of Dubai chocolate between December 2023 and September 2025 as an example of how signals can emerge at different points across channels. According to Cision’s analysis, social media attention and search interest preceded broader online news coverage, potentially providing earlier indications of the trend.

The findings come as communications teams face an increasingly fragmented information environment, with AI-generated answers becoming another source through which audiences discover and evaluate organisations.

Cision argues that connecting media, social, search and AI signals could allow organisations to identify emerging trends and reputational risks earlier, while giving teams a more consistent evidence base for decision-making.