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.
Johnston Press plc, one of the leading community media groups in the UK and Ireland, has announced that it will be launching TheSmartList, a new fixed price recruitment service designed to help employers fill vacancies quickly and cost-effectively.
The ABC last week released the consumer magazine circulation results for the January – June 2012 period and publishers have responded with their interpretation of the figures.
The National Readership Survey Ltd (NRS) has confirmed that NRS PADD – Print and Digital Data, its new dataset of combined print and website readership figures, will launch on the 10th September 2012.
Sovereign of the Seas, a new weekly partwork from De Agostini UK, goes on sale 29 August, initially priced £1.99.
Nuts, the weekly men’s magazine, has expanded into the travel sector and signed a partnership with The Stag Company to form the brand extension Nuts Great Escapes.
Future plc, the international specialist media group and leading digital publisher, has appointed Jonny Sullens to the new post of Head of Events with a brief to develop conferences and events as a significant new revenue stream for the company.
The Society of Editors is carrying out research into journalism training as part of a policy review for its training committee.
Five aspiring journalists have been awarded bursaries by the Journalism Diversity Fund following interviews with a panel of media professionals.
Britain’s only weekly motorsport newspaper, Haymarket’s Motorsport News, is now available as an iPad app.
The ABC yesterday released the consumer magazine circulation results for the January - June 2012 period and publishers have responded with their interpretation of the figures.
The Condé Nast College of Fashion & Design has appointed a Vice Principal and a Senior Lecturer (E-Learning).
The British Film Institute’s Sight & Sound has re-launched a brand new digital and app strategy linked to the 50th annual “Top 100 Greatest Film Poll” announcement.
Raconteur Media has announced a new special report distribution partnership with The Week, 2012’s winner of ‘Consumer Magazine of the Year’ at the PPA Awards.
With the final day of the London 2012 Olympic Games on Sunday, so Polestar Colchester completed its own printing marathon, having produced the Official Olympic Games Daily Programme for Haymarket Media’s Network Division during the 16 days of the eve
The Guardian has announced the addition of Josh Treviño to its commentary team in the United States.
