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.
Miles 33 has announced that Alpha Newspaper, one of the largest weekly newspaper groups in Northern Ireland, has signed an order for the delivery of a new publishing system.
Johnston Press has announced its trading update for the 17 weeks to 29 October 2016.
The Financial Times is investing in its FT Property Listings brand with new editorial content and a new website as a result of strong demand for its property coverage, says the company.
The Financial Times will offer free FT.com access to its US election coverage on Election Day, November 8, for 24 hours beginning at 5 am ET.
Archant has expanded its commercial offering by launching GoTarget Display, a new targeted advertising solution.
Archant has announced changes to its content operation which could result in the loss of up to 57 jobs and the creation of 40 new roles.
The Printing Charity announced at its 189th Annual Luncheon on 3 November that The Rt Hon. the Baroness Dean of Thornton-le-Fylde has accepted its invitation to be the charity’s 2017 President.
Newsquest Media Group has appointed two new Commercial Directors into the business. Sean Duffy has joined as Commercial Director for Scotland and Northern Ireland, and Jason Gill joins as Commercial Director for Cornwall.
The Guardian US mobile innovation lab has announced the launch of what it describes as the most dynamic 2016 presidential election results notifications that have ever been available through a news app, uniquely delivered directly to mobile lock scre
Agile, responsive data management is critical wherever information is archived, be it in a company-owned network or in the cloud. vjoon has launched its Storage Engine which aims to help IT teams make the most of agile data management.
The Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO) has announced two appointments to its Board, one lay member and one industry member who has recent senior experience at a publisher in the magazine sector.
UPM is planning to permanently reduce its graphic paper capacity in Europe by 305,000 tonnes. The capacity reductions are planned to take place in Austria and Germany.
The London Assembly has unanimously passed a motion calling on the capital’s mayor, Sadiq Khan, to engage with the NUJ and Newsquest over a dispute.
SPRYLAB, developer of e-publishing solution Purple DS, experienced growth during the first half of 2016 and now welcomes further partners.
On 20 October, Cxense chief product officer Tom Wilde delivered one of our ‘Top Tips Webinars’ where he discussed how personalisation can drive digital revenue. In this article, Tom takes you through the questions put to him during the webinar.
