News
National World announces new subs offer
New subscribers to The Scotsman and Yorkshire Post will also receive complimentary access to The New York Times, a benefit expected to attract thousands of new readers.
News Media
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.
Essential Resources
FEATURE
Returning to growth
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.
Best Practice in Publishing
News media
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…
INTERVIEW
Stand and deliver!
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.
INTERVIEW
Change before charge
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.
INTERVIEW
Ditching the generic
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.
INTERVIEW
The Observer’s premium future
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.
FEATURE
Opportunities & Threats: National News Media
What’s the outlook for national news media in 2024? Christian Broughton, CEO of The Independent, looks ahead.
FEATURE
Breathing new life into local media
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.
OPINION
We Need Trusted News Brands Now More Than Ever
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.
OUT & ABOUT WITH ALAN GEERE
Weekly does it
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.
All Articles
News
'The Trial' hits 300 episodes
Daily Mail podcast ‘The Trial’ has reached a milestone having produced 300 episodes.
COLUMN
Some takeaways from our September / October issue
James Evelegh picks out some takeaways from the September / October issue of InPublishing magazine.
COLUMN
8 nuggets from our Events Special
James Evelegh picks out some of the key takeaways from our recently published Events Special.
mediashapers 2024
Bright lights in a fragmenting Media World
Which publishing companies and brands are doing noteworthy things? Maybe it’s yours? As part of this year’s mediashapers poll, Jim Bilton tried to find out.
News
The FT launches new game
The FT has launched the Chancellor Game: Can you run the UK economy?
News
Guardian expands US election coverage
Guardian podcasts are expanding coverage of the US election.
News
NYT announces new Times App
The New York Times released its new app earlier this month.
COLUMN
Mainstream media’s vital role to play
How the media reports the outcome of the US election is of paramount importance.
EVENTS SPECIAL
Staging a successful consumer show
Great content is the cornerstone of a great show and creating magic moments is part of that, says Rachael Bosshardt, event director (food & festivals) at Immediate Live.
FEATURE
The battle for the White House… a very ugly, very dangerous election
‘How ugly will it get?’ The answer, alas, is uglier and uglier, more and more dangerous. Paul Connew looks at the US election from a media perspective…
OUT & ABOUT WITH ALAN GEERE
Constructive journalism
Should journalism concentrate on ‘telling it how it is’ or is there a wider responsibility to offer hope and optimism to a jaded readership? Alan Geere looks at whether constructive journalism could offer some answers.
FEATURE
In a year of riots and misinformation – how does the Online Safety Act stack up?
The much anticipated Online Safety Act was passed into law in October 2023, and less than a year later, the UK saw false information online fuel some of the most serious violence on the streets for more than a decade. What conclusions should we draw?
MEDIA FUTURES
Taking the long-view backwards
What can we learn from the past? Lots, as Jim Bilton finds out when he looks back over past mediafutures surveys.
Media Futures PULSE
Waiting for the Big One
There has been a distinct shift in the mood of the industry over the last few months, observes Jim Bilton having analysed the findings of the latest tranche of mediafuturesPULSE research.
