The rush to acquire local TV stations by media companies’ continued in 2014 and resulted in strong financial pay offs for them.
While the digital ad pie is growing, the numbers show that news organizations are competing for an increasingly smaller share of those dollars.
The sources of the estimated $63-$65 billion dollars supporting print, online and broadcast news has shifted, with advertising dollars declining and audience payments, in the form of subscriptions, for example, comprising a bigger share.
Online video is clearly becoming a part of the news media landscape. News is a part of what people watch online, and, more than ever, the public is a part of creating this news. But advertising and revenue opportunities, while they exist, are complicated.
An influx of new investments from the tech world and philanthropy signify a pivot in the way we support journalism financially.