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.
Media Trust and The Sun are calling for entries for Column Idol 2011, a competition to find raw undiscovered writing talent fronted by music star Jessie J and England footballer and children’s books author Theo Walcott.
Newspapers have until 30 June to submit an entry to the World Young Reader Prizes, the annual awards from the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA) that recognize success in engaging the young.
IOP Publishing (IOP) has announced that it is introducing an open access publishing option on 23 subscription-based journals, effective immediately, so that authors will be able to make the final versions of their articles freely available on publica
The Newspaper Society is to launch a major research project conducted by Crowd DNA looking at the importance of community in modern day life and how media channels fit into this.
The Guardian Charity Awards 2011, in association with the Foundation for Social Improvement (FSI), launched this week.
A short Q&A with David Boddington, recently promoted to the position of Head of Video Production – Games at Future.
The Brand Republic division of Haymarket Media Group is to introduce digital subscriptions across all titles from July 2011.
To many newspapers, starting a local or hyperlocal service in digital form might seem like an obvious thing to do…
BBC Magazines has signed an exclusive deal with Spellbound Entertainment to develop and produce BBC Magazines’ first pre-school magazine app for the multi award-winning children’s brand, The Koala Brothers.
Two well-established magazine titles - Times Higher Education and the iconic London listings title Time Out - have appointed digital agency Yucca to manage their pay-per-click (PPC) campaigns after competitive pitches.
Northcliffe Media, owner of 115 newspapers across the UK including the Leicester Mercury and Bristol Evening Post, has announced an overhaul of its recruitment advertisement offering as part of a drive to reposition local media to employers.
Following the retirement of Emanuela Pignataro, Condé Nast has restructured its digital operation.
Clinique, Estée Lauder and Bobbi Brown are sponsoring Marie Claire's Beauty Genius iPhone app in a three-month partnership.
On Saturday May 28th, Telegraph Media Group (TMG) produced The Goodwood Season Magazine, a 60-page glossy magazine celebrating the events hosted at Goodwood Estate each year.
Singer-songwriter Adele and her record label boss, publisher and plugger have topped the Guardian's Music Power 100, published last week.
