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.
Melanie Stark, formerly Content Team Leader at The Chartered Institute of Logistics & Transport has taken over as Editor of the Institute’s journal, Logistics & Transport Focus, and as PR Manager for the Institute.
Quadrant, part of the Air Business Group, has launched a comprehensive investment program into its systems development.
Following partial verdicts in the phone-hacking trial, Bob Satchwell, Executive director of the Society of Editors, has issued the following statement.
The programme and planning for the World Publishing Expo 2014, organised by the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA) from 13 to 15 October in Amsterdam, is shaping up.
Journalists and editors from The Sun, The Times and The Sunday Times today joined over 200 budding journalists at the London News Academy conference to inspire the next generation of newsmakers.
The Guardian is launching its first Glassware, the Guardian for Glass, as part of yesterday’s official launch of the Glass Explorer programme in the UK.
Bauer Media have announced a partnership with City University London to help journalism students create, develop and pitch creative content ideas to some of Bauer's senior executives.
Al Jazeera English journalists Peter Greste, Mohamed Fadel Fahmy and Baher Mohamed sentenced to between seven and ten years on terrorism-related charges; World’s press condemns “incomprehensible” verdict, passed despite lack of evidence tying the jou
Condé Nast Traveller has announced the launch of a new Spa Guide section on CNTraveller.com, in association with Healing Holidays.
Felix Dennis, founder of Dennis Publishing, passed away yesterday.
At its Xperience 2014 conference in Lisbon, last week, WoodWing Software introduced a new product called Enterprise Analytics, with new analytics features for its multi-channel publishing system Enterprise.
Professor Chris Toumazou, Co-Editor-in-Chief of the Institution of Engineering and Technology’s (IET) Electronics Letters, has won the Research category of the 2014 European Inventor Award for his microchip for quick DNA testing.
Nicholas Coleridge, President of Condé Nast International and Managing Director of Condé Nast Britain, has announced that Henrietta - 'Hatta' - Byng will be the new editor of House & Garden. Hatta will take up the new role in October, following the r
Bob Satchwell, Executive director of the Society of Editors, was today presented, alongside J K Rowling, with the International Writers Award 2014 at a ceremony in London.
The Telegraph Cruise Show Liverpool has announced that footballers Alan Hansen and Kenny Dalglish are to formally open the show. The event will take place on 11th-12th October at the Echo Arena, Liverpool.
