New Funding Models in Journalism Are Emerging, but Major Leap Forward Is Lacking

Abstract

This editorial introduces our thematic issue, titled Examining New Models in Journalism Funding, at a pivotal time. While news companies have attempted to build sustainable business models, we have not yet seen a major leap forward. As observed by the authors of this issue, digital reader revenue has become a prominent source of income for many publishers, but the bulk of them continue to rely on advertising and print subscriptions for money. Recently, Google and Facebook have become major funders of news and innovation in journalism. Some governments have also launched specific support programs. After providing some background context, we introduce the articles featured in the issue. We go on to argue that these articles signal a renewed interest in the business of journalism, which will help us better understand the ongoing financial crisis in the commercial news sector at a more granular level.