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.
Michelle Stanistreet has been re-elected unopposed as general secretary of the National Union of Journalists and begins her second five-year term with a new team of officers.
News UK has appointed Ben Walmsley as Digital Commercial Director at The Bridge, its commercial division.
Today, Affectv has announced it has made it on to The Leap 100 2016 – a list of the 100 most exciting, fast-growth companies in the UK, launched by Mishcon de Reya and City AM.
MailOnline and Metro are today unveiling the results of Millennial Rules, a joint research project on what makes the millennial generation tick.
Journalists on the Leicester Mercury, winner of last year's regional press awards, have asked not to take part in this year's awards in protest against the sacking of photographic staff, says the NUJ.
The Press Distribution Review Panel's Annual Report for the period 1st January 2015 - 31st December 2015 has now been published and is available on the Press Distribution Forum's website.
The NFRN has expressed concern that a new round of price increases at the Guardian and The Times will have a less than desired effect at retail.
News UK Commercial is relaunching as The Bridge, a refocused commercial offering that will bring together the company’s data, creativity and insight resources in one place to help clients more effectively reach News UK’s valuable audiences.
Larry Kilman, Secretary General of the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA), has left the organisation after a long career as a leading champion of press freedom and media development worldwide.
Johnston Press yesterday unveiled inews.co.uk, a new website that is designed to complement the layout and culture of the i newspaper.
Advertisers spent a record £8.61 billion on UK digital advertising in 2015 – up 16.4% – as ownership of internet devices increases, according to the latest Internet Advertising Bureau UK Digital Adspend report, conducted by PwC. The report is accompa
The chief executive of the parent company of the Guardian has said the newspaper would consider preventing readers from accessing its content if take-up of ad-blocking software becomes widespread.
The Financial Times has unveiled a new brand campaign with the endline ‘Make the right connections.’
Yesterday, Carolyn Morgan presented an InPublishing ‘Top Tips Webinar’, entitled ‘10 keys to successful digital transformation’. In the Q&A session that followed Carolyn’s presentation, we ran out of time before all the questions could be answered. H
WAN-IFRA has published a new report, Alternative Revenues Streams for Publishers, showcasing some of the efforts taking place today around the world.
