Independent tops online audience chart | Revenue down at DC Thomson
Plus Computer Weekly editor Bryan Glick tells us national media should keep an eye on what specialist titles are doing and journalism job cuts dropped sharply in 2024
Good morning and welcome to your daily Press Gazette media briefing on Tuesday 7 January, 2025, brought to you today in association with PA Media.
Download PA Media's Year in Content 2024 report to see the top stories that journalists engaged with from the PA news agency's coverage.
Eagle-eyed readers will notice a subtle change to our latest ranking of the UK top-50 websites.
We have led on the fact that The Independent had the largest overall monthly audience of any commercial news website in November. This is an impressive achievement given The Independent has (I would guess) no more than a quarter the editorial budget of rivals such as The Guardian and Mail titles.
But in terms of our published charts we have given greater prominence to engagement figures (the total UK audience minutes spent with websites rather than their overall reach).
That's because one click in a month does not amount to much commercially. Returning readers who spend time with online brands are far more valuable both business wise and a sign of a publication which is creating a meaningful community.
Looking at total time spent the BBC is way out in front (although this data will be skewed by non-news content), followed by aggregator Yahoo! (which may also include those checking their emails). The top commercial news publisher is Mail Online, with 1.4 billion UK audience minutes and 482 million pages views.
Today we also speak to Computer Weekly editor Bryan Glick who has done as much as anyone to secure justice for the victims of the Post Office scandal by asking awkward questions, providing victims with a voice and taking legal risks for more than 16 years. He explained why national media should pay more attention to specialist titles.
Our final tally of news media jobs lost in 2024 suggests there were around 4,000 layoffs last year in the UK and US. It suggests that last year was a tough one for our industry but far better than 2023, when there were 8,000 publicly reported job cuts in the sector.
The economic picture for our industry appeared to be improving in the last quarter of 2024 and I'm optimistic that we are on the upward slope of the economic cycle.
The latest accounts from Scottish publisher DC Thomson for the year to March 2024 show a publisher working hard to stand still (something I am sure many can relate to), with revenue from continuing operations down £1m year on year to £134.5m.
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A comprehensive look back at last year, it highlights the most popular stories across news, sport, entertainment and more, on its award-winning editorial platform PA Explore.
The report also provides a look at the year ahead, with editorial experts from the PA news agency sharing what they see as the big stories of 2025, plus a spotlight on key PA services in 2024.
On Press Gazette
Computer Weekly editor to national media: Pay more attention to specialist titles
“Keep a look at what specialist publications like us are doing, because there’s a wealth of great journalism and great stories there that we’d love for you to be covering.”
DC Thomson reports falling revenue for 2023/24 but investments boost profit
Subscriptions were the only revenue type to grow in the year to 31 March 2024, up 2% to £40.6m. The accounts stated there was a “continuing strong increase in news digital subscriber volumes” but did not specify a number.
50 biggest UK news websites: The Independent top commercial title by reach
The Independent overtook The Guardian to take second place in our top-50 monthly audience ranking of the UK’s news websites for November. However, in terms of engagement (time spent with the title) it ranks only 14th in the UK.
Around 4,000 journalism job cuts made in UK and US in 2024
The biggest share of the 2024 job cuts came in the first quarter of the year, before things slowed down in Q2 and then picked up again in each of Q3 and Q4.
News in brief
City AM has confirmed the end to its Monday print edition (but says it 'retains the ability' to publish for major events) and says it will put more focus on video and audio. (Press Gazette)
Google has transferred $100m to the Canadian Journalism Collective to exempt it for five years from legally enforced payments to publishers under Online News Act. The deal could be worth up to $20,000 per journalist for publishers, National Post reports. (National Post)
Rival image providers Getty and Shutterstock are reportedly considering a merger. (Bloomberg)
Google Discover has started showing more sources per story. (Search Engine Roundtable)
The Athletic's around 200 US-based editorial staff are asking The New York Times to recognise them as part of the newsroom union. (Newsguild of New York)
Apple has said it will update its AI Apple Intelligence feature "in the coming weeks" after inaccurately summarising several news app notifications including from the BBC. (BBC News)
Also on Press Gazette:
BBC local radio station showed ‘systemic failure’ on night of disorder
MP wins complaint against Birmingham Live over UK’s ‘grimmest village’ article
Byline Times seeks £200,000 for marketing by selling shares to readers
Ex-Computer Weekly journalist given OBE for Post Office reporting
Tortoise reports falling turnover but reduced losses after 2023 cutbacks
Lady in the lake murder: Why reporter has returned to the crime 27 years on
Media wins right to challenge Sara Sharif judges anonymity order
Diversify or die? 23 media leaders reveal how to make news pay in 2025
Channel 4 News editor: ‘We defy expectations because we move quickly’
How publishers can avoid affiliate marketing pitfalls and find new revenue (sponsored)
Trust, quality and data: Key ad revenue themes for publishers in 2024 (sponsored)
Latest podcast
Podcast 80: What we learned in 2024 about the business of news
The Press Gazette team look back on the big themes of 2024 for news publishers and reveal what they have learned. They also share their predictions for 2025 which include: more paywalls in the national media, an economic upturn all around and big changes in the tech platforms which readers use to discover their news.