Paying for Online Newspapers

[milo]

ooh, well, this may upset milo, steff and get me sued but all you have to do is use different browsers, different computers/phones, turn on "private Browsing", delete cookies, I could even mention using VPN's but thats only for the really smart kids

It doesn't upset me. I've done that in the past on the NYT site.

 

[milo]

Someone should start a website where a team sift through online news/blogs/articles etc. early every morning, and then put it together as an online newspaper. That way they're not restricted to certain reporters, who have to write an article even if they feel there's nothing to write about, and the content is all killer, no filler.
Surely hits and advertising is the only way for online newspapers to make a profit, rather than charging a fee for stuff you can read for nothing elsewhere?

The advertising model doesn't bring in enough money to cover the costs of proper reporting. That is why you have so much clickbait, churnalism and wire copy now.

A paywall like the Times has doesn't work either because it stops people sharing and discussing content. I think that the mixed approach that the NYT and FT have is probably better but people need to get used to the idea again of paying for news.

 

[Gutter Boy]

The advertising model doesn't bring in enough money to cover the costs of proper reporting. That is why you have so much clickbait, churnalism and wire copy now.

A paywall like the Times has doesn't work either because it stops people sharing and discussing content. I think that the mixed approach that the NYT and FT have is probably better but people need to get used to the idea again of paying for news.

Isn't part of the issue that (probably) the best news site in the world is paid for upfront by British taxpayers?

I'm afraid I only pay for physical media (I'm Napster generation). Louder Than War magazine is currently the only place that gets my £s. They were quite interesting in that they moved from being a website to being a high-end print magazine, just at the time everyone else was reducing to online only or free print copies. Mind you, I'd still be buying Hotspur magazine if it still existed.

 

[milo]

Isn't part of the issue that (probably) the best news site in the world is paid for upfront by British taxpayers?

I don't think that is the case anymore. The BBC was forced to cut back its website by the last government to appease Mr Murdoch.

 

[Gutter Boy]

I don't think that is the case anymore. The BBC was forced to cut back its website by the last government to appease Mr Murdoch.

They got rid of their forums and stuff that needed maintenance and a chunk of local news, but I'm not sure the core national/international content decreased much. If anything their more added-value column/commentary pieces seem to have increased in number.

 

[milo]

They got rid of their forums and stuff that needed maintenance and a chunk of local news, but I'm not sure the core national/international content decreased much. If anything their more added-value column/commentary pieces seem to have increased in number.

It's been scaled back a lot too and is given far less prominence. What I don't get is why they are doing so many listicles. I am sure that they are popular but if there was anything that a state broadcaster didn't need to do, it is them.

 

[Danishfurniturelover]

My local newspaper The Argus(Brighton) is actually produced by reporters based in Southampton. Which is probably why it is such an awful newspaper, Brighton like I am sure many towns round the country has real issues but it never makes it into the newspaper. You would have thought the kids coming out of university would want to make a name for themselves in investigative journalism and work loads of hours to get a big story.

Recently in Brighton we had a little segment of how some Londoners were arrested in a park (the Level) dealing drugs but no follow up story despite the fact everyone knows we have drug dealers coming down to Brighton all the time from London selling, you even see them get off trains at stations before Brighton to avoid the police with the sniffer dogs which are often at the ticket barriers.

Susses university which was all set to expand its campus in Eastbourne, Horsham and Hastings has suddenly cut back on its commitments.

We have an MP Lucas(green) who does not live in the town, owns 3 houses but says second home owners should not be allowed in the town.

We have a large student population who vote in Lucas but do not have to pay council tax, leaving the council with a massive financial black hole.

We have lots of pressing issues, but the reporters on the Argus keep telling me about the A27 improvements and adverts disguised as local interest stories, local restaurant changes it menu etc.

 

[Aldo]

It's been scaled back a lot too and is given far less prominence. What I don't get is why they are doing so many listicles. I am sure that they are popular but if there was anything that a state broadcaster didn't need to do, it is them.

http://www.glory-glory.co.uk/community/threads/top-fives.8898/

 

[Rorschach]

http://www.glory-glory.co.uk/community/threads/top-fives.8898/

That is a sad thread.

 

[Gutter Boy]

My local newspaper The Argus(Brighton) is actually produced by reporters based in Southampton. Which is probably why it is such an awful newspaper, Brighton like I am sure many towns round the country has real issues but it never makes it into the newspaper. You would have thought the kids coming out of university would want to make a name for themselves in investigative journalism and work loads of hours to get a big story.

Recently in Brighton we had a little segment of how some Londoners were arrested in a park (the Level) dealing drugs but no follow up story despite the fact everyone knows we have drug dealers coming down to Brighton all the time from London selling, you even see them get off trains at stations before Brighton to avoid the police with the sniffer dogs which are often at the ticket barriers.

Susses university which was all set to expand its campus in Eastbourne, Horsham and Hastings has suddenly cut back on its commitments.

We have an MP Lucas(green) who does not live in the town, owns 3 houses but says second home owners should not be allowed in the town.

We have a large student population who vote in Lucas but do not have to pay council tax, leaving the council with a massive financial black hole.

We have lots of pressing issues, but the reporters on the Argus keep telling me about the A27 improvements and adverts disguised as local interest stories, local restaurant changes it menu etc.

Robot journalists that turn wire feeds into prose are even cheaper than students.

 

[Danishfurniturelover]

Robot journalists that turn wire feeds into prose are even cheaper than students.

When you say Robots are cheaper i do not get it, surely these Robots need someone to plug them in and spray some WD40 on them. Plus knowing the unions in this country all these robots will be forced to join a union before long.