Commentary

Easy Listening News: Paywalls Lead To Softer Content, Less Local Reporting

Paywalls, which many publishers see as an economic lifeline, are having a chilling effect on local news coverage. 

Newspapers published an average of 5.1% less local news after adopting paywalls, reflecting a strategic shift toward more popular content, according to “How digital paywalls shape news coverage,” a study by Paramveer S. Dhillon and colleagues published in PNAS Nexus.

While this drop may seem modest, it represents “a significant shift in the information ecosystem of local communities and indicates a trend that, over time, could compound and lead to substantial cumulative effects,” the authors contend. 

There is no great mystery why: The cutback in local news “likely stems from a strategic shift by newspapers to prioritize content that is more effective in driving subscription revenues, potentially at the cost of traditional local news coverage,” the authors write. 

They continue, “For soft news (characterized by entertainment and lifestyle content), the decline is more modest at 2.2%. This relatively smaller reduction suggests a sustained emphasis on soft news, possibly due to its effectiveness in engaging a broad readership and its alignment with digital consumption trends.”

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The contraction in local news is even worse in cities with a population below 500,000: 12.8%.

“This suggests a more pronounced realignment of content priorities in these settings, possibly influenced by economic considerations under the new monetization strategy,” the author contend. 

In contrast, papers cities with a younger audience increased their soft news coverage by 3.5%. 

The takeaway from these depressing findings? 

“Overall, while paywalls offer a lifeline, their subtle reshaping of editorial priorities risks gradually degrading media’s democratic responsibilities,” the study concludes. “As news organizations walk this tightrope be- tween sustainability and pluralistic representation, informed public policy measures could help reinstate balance.”

The authors studied how coverage shifted after 17 major regional newspapers in the US adopted paywalls between 2006 and 2022.

 

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