The Failing New York Times

The New York Times continues to be America’s highest quality newspaper. And, the more Donald Trump attacks it, the better it appears to do in terms of readers. The Times is also doing massive amounts of advertising, especially for its digital products. The key for a newspaper’s survival today is turning analogue content into digital revenue.

Political news coverage of the Trump administration’s and Washington’s daily dramas have produced a boon for many publications from the right, left and center. The Times reported 99,000 new digital subscribers in the fourth quarter, for a total of 2.2 million digital news subscribers, up 613,000 from a year earlier.

A part of the surge to media, both legacy and digital, is the public’s view the news media is essential to a democratic society. Eighty percent of the public believes the news media is very important or critical to making sure citizens are informed, keeping leaders accountable and providing a platform for democratic communications.