Just look at the headlines this week: Mashable sold itself for a fifth of what it was valued at two years ago. Vice and Buzzfeed missed their revenue targets by a wide margin.
Josh Marshall at Talking Points Memo summed up what’s happening this way:
We’re actually in the midst of a digital news media crash, only no one is willing to say it. I’ve mentioned before that digital news media in the midst of a monetization crisis. But again, it’s a full blown crash.
The problem is that so many news sites are confused about their customer. Is it the advertiser or the reader?
If you’re an advertiser, you’ll do much better placing ads on Google and Facebook. A digital news site just cannot compete with their ability to target customers.
That’s why I moved Political Wire to a membership model a couple of years ago. I want this to be the best site for readers. But it relies on your direct support. Those who support the site get new features, a cleaner reading experience and no ads.
Join us for just $5 a month or $50 a year.
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