"For 2026, I keep coming back to one truth: The future of journalism depends on our ability to diversify revenue far more intentionally. For years, I believed one of my former employers was among the strongest examples of this model. During my tenure there, they had newsletter sponsorships, events, digital and print advertising, and a clear playbook for how each line supported the others. Today's landscape requires an even deeper level of diversification. It's not enough to have multiple revenue lines."
"We need to build experiences where every single project or product has revenue potential. We need to treat that as a strategic requirement rather than a nice-to-have, meaning we consider a revenue spot for everything. Sound obvious? Maybe, but it will require a major mind shift for some organizations, even in 2026. Audience habits have changed, and the pathways that once reliably brought people to our sites continue to decline."
The future of journalism depends on far more intentional revenue diversification. Organizations must ensure every project and product has explicit revenue potential and treat that as a strategic requirement rather than a nice-to-have. Projects and platforms should be evaluated for at least two revenue sources before launch. Audience journeys now start across many platforms and AI apps where publishers have limited control, reducing the reliability of traditional traffic paths. Diversification builds resilience against platform policy shifts and changing funder priorities. Redundancy by design should include sponsorships, endowments, live events, and revenue-tailored experiences beyond pageviews and newsletter metrics.
Read at Nieman Lab
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