News and On-line media

Print Production:

The news Industry is concerned with the production, distribution and circulation of news information and entertainment.

Today’s UK  News papers are

•created using a process called off set printing

•They require large amounts of material

•The employ mainly highly trained staff

Print News is deadline driven with a typical turn around time of 24 –hours.

News Circulation:

Refers to the number of newspapers that have been distributed (not sold).  Circulation figures are important because they are used to set advertising rates.

Print Newspaper sales have declined significantly over the past two decades which has had a significant effect on the way newspapers run their business.

Print vs Online 

The Political Views of the Newspapers:

•Which two companies own 60% of the British Press, what is their political affiliation?- News UK & DMG Media

•Why might Press ownership be important in shaping the British public views on political issues such as Brexit, voting for political parties?- they are influencing peoples opinions 

The Cost:

British newspapers must attract audiences to make money and survive.

2015 UK newspaper industry contributed £5.3 Billion Gross value added and supports £87,500 jobs.

Print Newspaper production is financed through print sales and advertising revenue.

The Guardian costs £2,20 mon-fri

the mail is 70p

Circulation sales

14.3 million people read a newspaper every day.

81% of newspaper revenue comes from circulation sales.

The cost of a Daily Newspaper ranges from 3 p to £2.70 with the Daily Mail retailing at xx p and Guardian xx per day (Task find out what the costs are!)

Advertising

•Advertisers pay for space in the paper

•Advertising in national newspapers is expensive, depending on the paper’s circulation figures and audience (A, B, C1, , D, E)

•The cost of a full page colour advert in the Daily Mail is £30,000

•Newspapers now make money from adverts in off line (print) and online (digital) editions

•Readers of print newspapers are more likely to read an advert than online readers.

ALTERNATIVE METHODS OF FUNDING PRINT NEWS INCLUDE:

• Subscriptions and donations
• Online subscription fees known as paywalls, which pay for online services and also fund print papers (Task find out what the subscription costs are for the telegraph and the Guardian)
• Reader donations and memberships

The News Paper industry is radically changing with decreased revenue from print sales.

Media barons such as Rupert Murdoch will use their money from other media businesses to invest/subsidise their  news organisation.

Newspapers such as the Daily Telegraph lost 23% of their circulation in 2017 – 2018. 

For the news industry to survive there needs to be a revision of the traditional financial model.   Possible funding strategies include: 

• Government or public funded subsidies
• Philanthropy- the promotion of the welfare of others using money towards causes in the public interest
• Greater focus on payment from online access
• Pooled reporting to reduce the cost of journalists
• Greater use of freelance agencies for news stories. 

Technological Changes:

Many developments such as the introduction of colour off set printing have benefited owners making newspapers more appealing to readers and quicker to print.

Since the 1980’s rapid developments in digital technology in terms of hardware, software and converged devices have significantly changed the relationship between news owners and their audiences.

Over the past 20 years, since the introduction of web2.0 in 2004  the print industry has undergone significant changes in production, distribution and circulation:

• To remain relevant for audiences and tackling falling sales of print copies, newspapers have expanded their copies online.  This has a number of advantages online for owners:
• Production via websites reduces environmental costs of producing with paper and ink.
• Distribution via the internet reduces the cost of physical distribution and enables news outlets to reach a global audience.
• Circulation via websites and mobile devices allows audiences to access news and advertising online through apps and social media.

This increases circulation numbers for the news outlet

Allows audiences to share and interact with the news

Enables owners to monitor which stories are most popular

While there are some economic benefits of digital technology for news owners, the proliferation of technology has led to a reduction in printed newspaper sales.

• Guardian has lost 200,000 print readers in ten years
• Independent is now only available online
• Some established newspapers are looking to sell their titles e.g. the Express and Star (owned by Richard Desmond was sold to Reach plc.  After the circulation dropped in 2017 – 2018 by 50% & also the Telegraph owned by the Barclay Brothers).

Cultivation theory suggests that exposure to media, over time, subtly "cultivates" viewers' perceptions of reality. Gerbner and Gross assert: "Television is a medium of the socialization of most people into standardized roles and behaviors. Its function is in a word, enculturation"