OUGD401 - Why Print Newspapers Remain the Dominant Media Power in Britain

An interesting article from The Guardian written by Ed Amory, a noted journalist and writer. He makes many interesting observations on his experience working as a journalist during a time when many of the largest newspapers were beginning to seek out online readership. He states that between 2005 and 2012, over 242 local newspapers were forced to shut down due to a decline in sales. He touches on the statement made by Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg , who is quoted as saying 'Facebook will become the perfect personalised newspaper for every person in the world'. To follow this, recent figures show that 24% of us say that our main method of accessing news is through our mobile phones, and 16% of us share a news story on social media weekly.

Despite this, Amory seems confident in the future of print. According to last year’s Deloitte report on media consumption in the UK, half of all Britons still buy print newspapers and a further 10% read papers bought by others, compared to only 31% who read stories online on newspapers’ websites daily. Of course, the long-term trend for print is irreversibly downwards, but in the UK at least, print media still dominates much of people’s media consumption.

http://www.theguardian.com/media/greenslade/2015/feb/16/why-print-newspapers-remain-the-dominant-media-power-in-britain