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.
Quark has announced the availability of Retro Magazine iPad app on the Apple Store. The app has been designed in QuarkXPress and combines rich, interactive content covering all aspects of contemporary style with classic influence.
Linking Mobile, the first UK based global mobile affiliate network, which launched in May this year, is adding SMS and QR code technology to its offering.
Trinity Mirror North Wales has relaunched the Bangor Mail as a paid-for title.
The UK arm of the Specialised Information Publishers Association (SIPA) held its annual conference at Royal Mint Court in July. James Evelegh went along to listen and learn.
The Press Complaints Commission (PCC) has ruled that an article in The Sunday Times did not breach the Clauses 1 (Accuracy) and 2 (Opportunity to reply) of the Editors' Code of Practice, following a complaint from the England and Manchester United fo
With worldwide sales of media tablets rising rapidly, a South Wales-based software developer, is set to launch a new publishing platform, designed to transform the way people read magazines on screen.
In advance of the UCAS clearing listings being announced this Thursday August 18th, Telegraph Media Group (TMG) has created a Clearing app for students which will allow them to search by course, university and location to find relevant courses.
Time Out Group has taken a further step in its progression towards consolidation as a digital media group, with the acquisition of LikeCube.
CNBC, the business and financial news channel, has appointed Ted Kemp as Senior News Editor for CNBC.com in EMEA, based at the network’s regional headquarters in London.
News International (NI) has confirmed that its Sunday carriage charge will not be reduced for Directly Delivered (DTR) retailers, even though it is no longer delivering the News of the World.
Telegraph Media Group (TMG) launched its 2011 Telegraph Travel Awards this weekend, in the Travel Supplement of Saturday’s The Daily Telegraph, with a comprehensive consumer survey of British travel habits.
Mazda has announced it is the first UK brand to use the new advertising toolbar solution from contextual ad company Vibrant – with an online campaign to run until the end of September 2011.
The arc of war and strife since September 11 is captured in an exhibit featuring the work of Anja Niedringhaus, an Associated Press photojournalist known for her striking images from conflict zones around the world.
European Sell Side Platform (SSP) Improve Digital, has hired Chris Goodier as partnership development manager in the UK.
Retail newsagents are fed up being treated as the poor relation in the news supply chain and want action taken. The NFRN’s Kieran McDonnell explains why.
