The latest digital move by Australia Community Media to only print Saturday editions for the remaining of its printed newspapers and transition to digital news, over a seven-year period is a bittersweet moment for regional news in Australia.
ACM manages 65 daily including The Daily Advertiser, The Courier, The Canberra Times, Illawarra Mercury and Newcastle Herald and non-daily mastheads such as the Goulbourn Post, along with Agricultural newspapers and websites. The plan is to transition all remaining mastheads in the next seven-years, to eventually produce daily online news during the week, and printed editions on Saturdays. The decision impacts ACM’s three largest mastheads – the Illawarra Mercury, The Canberra Times and the Newcastle Herald.
The regional news landscape has taken a battering over the last decade – and according to the Media Arts and Entertainment Alliance over 200 regional and community newspapers have ceased printing or closed completely over the last ten years. Most recently, Anna Draffin, the former chief executive of the Public Interest Journalism Initiative, said over the last five years PIJI had recorded 166 news outlet closures.
ACM’s Managing Director Tony Randall cites this very instability as the reason for his company’s move. He told the ABC, the long-term future of publishing is to have a “digital subscription product during the week and a really strong Saturday publication”. In the wake of Meta’s decision to stop funding news, Randall said tough decisions needed to be made. The subscription-based business model enables a wider geographical range of readers, according to Randall, which might contribute to greater social cohesion.
However, ACM’s publication coverage spans a large swathe of regional Australia. And removing singular daily printed editions will weaken local media’s ability to reach people and cultivate what scholars have called a “sense of belonging” amongst locals. And particularly so, for those who may not have internet access and digital skills to navigate the digital sphere. The Digital Inclusion Index report, 2023, states digital inclusion is below national average for individuals 65 years and above.
The phasing out of print to preference digital platforms raises concerns about the need for greater digital literacy skills. ACM’s move into the digital sphere is good news for the sustainability of its news product, but without greater digital literacy it could prove counterproductive.
Alana Su-Navratil, CMT Research Assistant