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 Associated Press will offer customers multimedia coverage of the 13th IAAF World championships in Daegu, South Korea, launching a new digital sports product that will provide text stories linked to photos and video clips from Sports News Televisi
The River Group has announced that it will be expanding its role with Ramblers to include the Ramblers Online Directory within its media sales remit.
Telegraph Media Group (TMG) has launched a bespoke partnership with Marston’s Pedigree, the England cricket team’s official beer, to coincide with the Indian test series at Lords this summer.
News Corporation has confirmed the formal establishment and extension of the mandate of the Management and Standards Committee (MSC) as an independent body outside of News International.
Internet Advertising Sales House (IASH) was originally launched in 2006 to police the activities of sales houses and networks through an effective industry-agreed Code of Conduct, audited by ABC.
The Scunthorpe Telegraph is to convert from a daily title to a weekly as part of Northcliffe Media's plans for growth.
The Sunday Express has (15th July) became the latest publisher to jump on the bandwagon of “retailer mugging” by reducing its cover price from £1.35 to £1, says the NFRN.
The NFRN has slammed The Mail for slashing the percentage that retailers receive on its Monday to Friday issues to 23.2 per cent.
Associated Newspapers, the national media division of DMGT, has announced that it is increasing the price of the Daily Mail Monday to Friday editions from 50p to 55p from Monday 18th July.
News Corporation has announced the appointment of Tom Mockridge to the role of Chief Executive Officer of News International.
The National Readership Survey (NRS) has unveiled the first readership estimate for ‘i’, the morning newspaper launched last November by the publishers of The Independent.
NowGamer.com v2.0 has launched, giving readers a fresh angle on videogames, bringing them better coverage, and offering new features and social networking opportunities.
The NFRN has condemned News International for moving its Fabulous colour supplement from the defunct News of the World into the Saturday Sun.
Future has unveiled Teach Yourself Photoshop – a new premium product for the iPad from the makers of Digital Camera and Practical Photoshop magazines.
No publisher, however small, can avoid developing a mobile strategy, writes Carolyn Morgan.
