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.
ESI Media has announced a six-figure sponsorship deal with the two bookmakers, who merged in February this year, which will run on the sports pages of the London Evening Standard.
SPRYLAB technologies GmbH, a leading Berlin based mobile technology company, specialising within the digital publishing sector, has expanded into the UK market and have opened their first international office in Old Street in London.
Dundee newspaper, the Evening Telegraph, is extending its offering and launching a Saturday edition, the Weekend Telegraph.
The latest ABC data shows that national newspapers retained 70 per cent of the circulation increase they enjoyed in June following the EU referendum, according to analysis by Newsworks.
Brian Doel, owner of the regional West Country Sunday Independent and former group managing director of Tindle Newspapers, has died.
The Rt. Hon the Lord Blunkett is this year’s guest speaker at The Printing Charity’s’ 189th Annual Luncheon on Thursday, 3 November 2016, at Stationers’ Hall, Ave Maria Lane, London.
IBT Media, owners of International Business Times UK (IBTimesUK) and Newsweek Europe, has announced further expansion with the launch of two new arms to the UK business; advertising content hub IBTailored, and a new conferences and events division.
ESI Media has announced that Vodafone will be the exclusive commercial partner for its late night edition of The London Evening Standard.
Gold Key Media this week announced the launch of its new digital platform.
Ingenta, a leading software provider to the publishing industry, has acquired 5 fifteen Ltd, software supplier to the magazine and newspaper sector.
Guardian US last week announced two senior editorial appointments. Jane Spencer joins as deputy editor, strategy, while David Taylor is promoted to deputy editor, news. Both will report directly to Lee Glendinning, editor of Guardian US.
Archant has announced that it is opening up commercial space on The New European for a number of media auctions, on the back of the pop up newspaper’s extended publication run.
WoodWing has released Content Station 10, the new HTML5-based version of its editorial management application.
The Financial Times yesterday announced the appointment of John Kundert as its chief technical officer (CTO), leading the FT’s technology strategy across the development and operations teams.
Metro is expanding its football content in time for the new season with the launch of a new Friday pull out section, MatchZone, to sit alongside its new football news app, 11versus11.
