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.
Cornish publisher Independent Media has shelved publication of its Sunday Independent, but said staff will be redeployed as it launches two new editions of its Voice series.
Chicago Public Media is to acquire the Chicago Sun-Times and bring it under non-profit ownership, in what some in the sector said could prove a model for the industry.
ES Magazine, the Evening Standard’s weekly lifestyle and culture magazine, on Friday unveiled a new spirit, vision and look, both in print and online, under the leadership of new editor Ben Cobb.
The competition prize gives advertisers a free multi-platform campaign worth over £500,000 across dmg media titles, and one Lumen attention study.
Brand Metrics, a technology company which works with publishers to demonstrate the effectiveness of digital advertising, has announced it is to continue its longstanding partnership with the FT.
Boris Johnson: Fleet Street takes sides, Pippa Crerar, (not) full disclosure, Operation Distraction, Operation Red Meat & the BBC, Sidney Poitier and front page of the fortnight.
With people no longer anchored in the office, publishers have to rethink their personnel practices.
Ruth Davidson is joining Times Radio to present the Friday afternoon show (1-4pm) previously hosted by Giles Coren. Her first show will air on 18th February.
Mail Metro Media last week announced that Dominic Williams, Executive Director, Advertising, has been promoted to Chief Revenue Officer.
Jim Mullen has called for government and regulators to take “swift and decisive action” to level the playing field between the tech platforms and news publishers.
One of the quickest ways to get politicians to change direction is to enlist the support of a newspaper.
The Telegraph is relaunching its Saturday magazine on January 29 in a bigger format with an improved quality cover and, say the publishers, even more of the best Telegraph journalism.
Today, Reach announced the launch of its newly named digital tech platform Neptune, bringing together its existing first party data platform with its slate of data matching capabilities and AI tools.
Northern Echo group editor Karl Holbrook and Newsquest Cumbria group editor Vanessa Sims have established an investigations venture for the north of England.
News UK Broadcasting yesterday announced that political journalist Tom Newton Dunn will present a major weeknight news and current affairs programme on talkTV when it launches early in 2022.
