The newspaper business was built for a world where one product served everyone and advertising paid for most of it. That model has gone. What replaces it is still being worked out title by title, from national groups to weeklies covering a single town.
Reader revenue is the clearest shift. Even Reach, which argued for free access for years, now puts some of its journalism behind a paywall, and the regional titles doing best changed their newsrooms before they asked anyone to pay. Ownership keeps changing too. National World rebuilt local editorships after years of centralisation, and the Observer is being reinvented as a premium print and digital title under new owners.
The strongest publishers understand the difference because they are not trying to be everything to everyone. They are trying to be essential to someone.
Chris Sherrard News media
Local news is where the pressure shows most. Millions of people now live without a dedicated local title, and new reader-funded and membership startups are moving into the gaps. Platforms are pulling back from news at the same time, which leaves trust and a direct relationship with readers as the assets that matter most.
Print hasn't disappeared either. Well-run weeklies still hold on to their readers, with circulation falling slowly while digital audiences grow.
Below you'll find some of our best feature articles on news media, from reader revenue and newsroom change to ownership, local news and trust, alongside our latest news and industry commentary.
Where is the growth opportunity for today’s publishers? Douglas McCabe tracks how the commercial model has evolved over the past fifty years and examines whether a better understanding of what online audiences want, will help drive future growth.
We asked Chris Sherrard, editor-in-chief of The Irish News, what does best practice publishing look like in news media? This is what he said…
After years of resisting paywalls, Reach is now launching them across its titles. But David Higgerson, Reach’s chief content officer, carefully avoided the word ‘U-turn’ when interviewed by Steve Dyson.
It’s one thing to think that readers should pay for your journalism, but the reality is that unless you improve your offering, then you will struggle to start charging for it, as DC Thomson Editor-in-Chief Frank O’Donnell tells Ciar Byrne.
How can you edit a regional newspaper when you never visit the area you’re writing about? By filling it with generic content, an approach that National World’s David Montgomery, the new owner of JPI Media, is rapidly doing away with.
Ray Snoddy talks to Co-CEO Rich Furness about the thinking behind Tortoise Media’s acquisition of the world’s oldest Sunday newspaper and about their plans for its future.
What’s the outlook for national news media in 2024? Christian Broughton, CEO of The Independent, looks ahead.
There is a new generation of entrepreneurs launching local media businesses, bringing with them new ideas on business models and funding. Phil Clark looks at some of the stand-out examples.
With Meta backing away from ‘news’ and AI accelerating the growth of disinformation, we need to redouble our efforts to safeguard access to quality journalism, says News Media Association Chief Executive Owen Meredith.
East Lothian is not just the best place to live – it has the best newsbrand too. Alan Geere heads over the border to find out what’s happening in the world of Scottish weeklies.
Bursting out of left field, or should that be right, the former PM’s essay dominated news headlines, alongside more Mandelson revelations & the fallout from the Nowak murder case. Paul Connew reviews another extraordinary political & media week.
The News Media Association, the Society of Editors and the PPA have responded to the Competition and Markets Authority's conduct requirement for Google Search published today.
Assertive Yield has announced a partnership with The Media Trust to strengthen ad quality & publisher revenue.
A new FT Strategies and WAN-IFRA study finds newsrooms are rebuilding around AI, audiences and community.
Reach has appointed George Grist as chief customer officer for its newly created division, bringing together reader revenue strands.
NLA Media Access has announced the appointment of James White as chief revenue officer.
New board members take office at WAN-IFRA's annual meeting in Marseille, France.
The Courier, The Press and Journal and The Sunday Post have launched Fresh Start, a joint editorial campaign urging reform to business rates relief, to bring empty commercial properties back into use and support Scotland’s local economies.
Pixometry says it has streamlined its professional-grade image enhancement platform for a new generation of users.
The 2026 WAN-IFRA Golden Pen of Freedom is to be awarded to the professional photo and video journalists of Gaza.
Independent retail marketing specialist Retail Spark has become the latest company to support industry charity NewstrAid, signing up as a corporate sponsor for the first time.
SunSport’s Director of Sport Shaun Custis, Dean Scoggins, and Will Pugh are to host a new show featuring former England defender Kyle Walker, bringing fans closer to the World Cup action.
New consultation and archive services for the local news media sector’s Public Notice Portal have been launched following a major phase of development with funding from the Google News Initiative.
The NUJ has joined the International Federation of Journalists and the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine in condemning missile-and-drone attacks by Russian forces on media offices in Kyiv.
The cross-brand campaign incorporates innovative video, digital, print and podcast executions across The Sun, Times Media and talkSPORT.
