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 NS has outlined the main concerns for regional and local publishers of the Royal Charter deal on regulating Britain’s press reportedly agreed on Sunday night by the three main political party leaders and the lobby group Hacked Off.
Regional and local newspaper editors have come out against the cross party Royal Charter agreement with one editor describing it as an “insult” to the vast majority of newspapers and magazines which make up the press industry.
Euromoney Institutional Investor, the international online information and events group, is expanding its insurance and reinsurance business with the acquisition of Insider Publishing Limited.
According to Jon Slattery, you’ve got to be worried when politicians look so pleased with themselves. Jon looks back on a tumultuous week for the press.
Guardian News & Media has launched Guardian Destinations, a new hotel booking site giving readers access to some of the best independent hotels from around the world.
International medical publisher, BMJ Group, has teamed up with the American Diabetes Association to publish an open access, online only journal.
The Design Mode is a new option within Wave2’s AdPortal solution for self service advertising. It allows a user to interactively create or modify an advertisement to their specific requirements.
The Mail on Sunday has announced it is to launch a new magazine called Event, backed by a £3m marketing campaign, next month.
With George Osborne delivering the 2013 Budget today, The Times has created a quirky, animated video for kids, explaining the role of the Chancellor of the Exchequer and how the country’s finances get divided up.
The Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) has announced the appointment of two new Editors-in-Chief to two of its academic journals.
Incisive Media has launched a “ground breaking” service for readers of BusinessGreen, which will see the brand take its first step towards paid for content.
Johnston Press plc has announced its results for the 52 week period ended 29 December 2012.
There have been contrasting reactions to yesterday’s announcement of a cross-party agreement on press regulation. Hacked Off welcomed it but sections of the press have serious reservations.
GQ will partner with the Serpentine Gallery at this year’s Men of the Year Awards to present a new honour, the GQ Artist of the Year, it’s been announced by Dylan Jones, the Editor of British GQ, Julia Peyton-Jones, Director, and Hans Ulrich-Obrist,
The first issue of The Big Black Book, a new biannual style magazine for men, published by Hearst Magazines UK and edited by the team behind Esquire, hits UK newsstands for the first time on 19 March.
