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.
A&N Media, the consumer media division of DMGT, has announced that its printing division, Harmsworth Printing Limited, is considering plans to relocate its present Surrey Quays, South London printing operation to a new green field site in Thurrock, E
Reader’s Digest UK has briefed twentysix, Digivate and I Spy to build its online presence as it focuses on connecting with its audience through a range of digital channels.
The World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA) and the World Editors Forum has condemned the sentencing of a Yemeni journalist for alleged links to Al-Qaeda.
The Specialist Media Magazine is a new digital magazine, published by the Specialist Media Show, in the run up to May’s event, for specialist media businesses.
The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette is now available as a complete digital replica of the printed edition, combined with breaking news from the newspaper's website, in the form of the new ArkansasOnline for the Apple iPad.
The Radio Times has announced that its editorial is available on an EPG service (electronic programme guide) in nearly 4 million Freeview homes, reaching 11 million UK viewers every day.
Racecar Engineering, the motorsport technology magazine, has unveiled its new website.
Roundpoint, the web and mobile integration specialist, has developed a new mobile site for The Lancet.
The latest Media Pioneer is Factory Media. Carolyn Morgan looks at their successful app strategy.
Earlier this month, Bauer Media launched its first iPad edition with movie magazine Empire. Editor in Chief, James Dyer, looks at how they went about it.
Forbes Media has launched the next phase in a rolling redesign of Forbes.com, including newly re-architectured and redesigned Channel pages as well as a new Home Page, which will continue to be enhanced during the year.
Targeting platform nugg.ad and Dennis Publishing announce a new cooperation for the English market.
Robert Harding World Imagery, the independent travel photography specialist, has recently launched its new website.
Northcliffe’s localpeople network expands with the launch of 14 new sites.
News Corporation has released the following statement in response to yesterday’s statement by Jeremy Hunt, Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport.
