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Showing posts from June, 2019

Digital news killed print news, right?

A common argument, accepted by many for its simple narrative, is that digital news killed print news. But the reality is more complicated. Newspaper print circulation number rose until about 2005 in most Western countries, along with rising populations. That increase, however, masked the fact that household penetration began declining in the 1970s, reaching about 25-35% in those countries at the millennium. This household trend began 3 decades before the appearance of the internet news and led to advertisers to progressively reduce newspaper advertising. Advertisers were unhappy with newspapers long before the internet. The internet made it possible for many to use it capabilities for inexpensive marketing and personal marketing that cost little and took the place of print real estate, automobile, employment and other classified advertising. Internet advertising became free or low cost. The growth of internet advertising revenue never matched the amount of money leaving print because