News
Print ABCs: “strong month” for Guardian and Observer
The Guardian and Observer reported month-on-month increases in their print ABCs for September.
News Media
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.
Essential Resources
FEATURE
Returning to growth
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.
Best Practice in Publishing
News media
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…
INTERVIEW
Stand and deliver!
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.
INTERVIEW
Change before charge
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.
INTERVIEW
Ditching the generic
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.
INTERVIEW
The Observer’s premium future
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.
FEATURE
Opportunities & Threats: National News Media
What’s the outlook for national news media in 2024? Christian Broughton, CEO of The Independent, looks ahead.
FEATURE
Breathing new life into local media
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.
OPINION
We Need Trusted News Brands Now More Than Ever
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.
OUT & ABOUT WITH ALAN GEERE
Weekly does it
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.
All Articles
News
Guardian releases newly designed Daily app
This week, the Guardian revealed its new Guardian Daily app across iOS and Android devices.
REVIEW
What every good salesperson needs
Ad sales will remain a vitally important revenue stream for many years to come. Key to maximising sales is giving proper support to your sales teams.
News
Guardian becomes a B Corporation
Guardian Media Group (GMG) this week announced it is to become a B Corporation - making it the first major international news organisation to achieve B Corp certification.
News
Global Certified Media List launched by IFABC
The International Federation of Audit Bureaux of Certification has launched the Certified Media List, the first global list of more than 14,756 audited media brands from 19 IFABC member countries across the globe.
COMMENT
Inner peace
Harry and Meghan have launched a number of lawsuits against the tabloid press. Do they know what they’re getting themselves into?
News
DC Thomson Media sets up news brand transformation team
DC Thomson Media has appointed two of its editors to a new project team being set up to manage the transformation of the business to extend subscription and reader revenues across multiple platforms.
News
New signing for Guardian Sport
The Guardian this week announced that Jonathan Liew will join as a sports writer for the Guardian next month.
News
HuffPost Centre for Journalism formerly launches
HuffPost Editor-in-Chief Lydia Polgreen this week traded New York for the second city to launch the ‘HuffPost Centre for Journalism’ in Birmingham.
News
Wave2 releases 3rd generation Dynamic Publishing solution
Wave2, part of the Miles 33 group, has announced the official release of the third generation of its Dynamic Publishing Solution.
News
ESI appoints new North American lead
ESI Media this week announced the appointment of Blair Tapper to the role of SVP, North America.
News
FT appoints Lauren Indvik
The Financial Times has appointed Lauren Indvik as fashion editor.
News
MPP Global Enhances Experience Optimisation Capability
MPP Global, the creator of eSuite, a subscriber management and billing platform, has unveiled its enhanced Experience Optimisation capability.
News
Lord Black Calls For Publisher Exemption From Age Verification Codes
Speaking in Parliament this week, Lord Black of Brentwood has highlighted the “serious concerns” among news publishers about the Information Commissioners Office's age appropriate design draft code.
News
AOP announces Digital Publishing Summit 2019 line up
BBC and Channel 4’s investigative technology journalist, Geoff White, will host the annual summit.
