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.
The past twelve months have seen a significant reconfiguration of algorithms, as search engines seek to hone search results through a better understanding of user intent. Some of these changes have gone unnoticed by the casual observer, but writes Am
However brilliant the strategy and execution of your renewal series, customers will not renew unless they have engaged with your publication over the previous twelve months. Fostering engagement is therefore the key to achieving high renewal rates, w
A fact-finding trip across America left Keith Harrison, editor of Britain’s biggest regional daily newspaper, optimistic about a digital future. Steve Dyson reports.
For Peter Houston, who is not a big fan of news feeds, Yahoo’s News Digest is like a breath of fresh air: it’s concise, colourful and kind of fun!
Former BBC and Microsoft executive, Ashley Highfield, took up his post as chief executive of Johnston Press three years ago, with a brief to expand the publisher’s digital presence. Since then, the company has undergone significant structural change
GQ’s Dylan Jones has been named Editor of the Year at last night's PPA Awards, capping off a successful 25th anniversary year for the iconic Condé Nast men’s magazine brand.
Quilt Now, a new monthly title from Practical Publishing International, goes on sale 17 July, priced £4.99. The new title aims to be the “essential guide to fabric and patchwork”.
Sir Ray Tindle, chairman of Tindle Newspapers, has spoken of his conviction that the local press is returning to “full viability” as advertising across different categories returns to the industry following the recession.
Eric Pickles has said that independent local media is the best means for local authorities to communicate with the public and that he wants councils to work with publishers to find innovative new ways to advertise public notices across local media’s
Until now the premium e-communications service from Quadrant, part of the Air Business Group, has been restricted to their subscription management client base.
Content. Revenue. The Power of Print. Those are the topics for the three “Media Port” presentation stages that will be embedded in the World Publishing Expo, the global trade exhibition for the news publishing and media industry to be held in Amsterd
DC Thomson Ventures and Seedcamp have made a seed investment in self-publishing startup Reedsy. The investment is a 50/50 split between the two funds.
Informa plc is today announcing changes to its operating model and its Executive Management Team to position the Group for growth and scale.
Bloomberg BRIEF, the electronic newsletter division of Bloomberg L.P. has launched the London BRIEF, a free newsletter published weekdays showcasing the best of Bloomberg’s coverage of business, politics and culture in the UK capital.
Haymarket Media Group has announced that its West Coast Labs (WCL) security business unit has been spun out to West Coast Labs LLC, a newly-formed entity owned and managed by Scott Markle.
