Abstract

Newspapers in Nigeria have joined their counterparts worldwide in establishing online presence and using social media to enhance their sites. Social media platforms have made it possible for more people to participate in gathering and disseminating the news while at the same time shifting the news consumption patterns and affecting the newspaper business. This paper explores the implication ofthe existing newslandscape empowered by technological advances on theeconomic fortunes of three Nigerian newspapers namely Daily Trust, Leadership and Guardian. Data was gathered through written interview and results were presented using bar charts. Findings indicate that Guardian is the worst hit as its annual circulation declined steadily from 2012 to 2016 while that of Daily Trust and Leadership increased progressively within the same period. Advertizing revenue fluctuated by rising and falling inconsistently. Revenue from internet traffic remains unexpectedly low for Guardian and Leadership while Daily Trust appears to be doing better relatively. The paper argues that even though the industry is generally assumed to be passing through tough time as a result of technology-driven changes in media forms, some newspapers appearto be more vulnerable than others. Yet, revenues from internet traffic and online advert have not grown fast enough to fill the likely gap to be created by falling revenues from print adverts and copy sales.

Key Words:Social Media, Newspaper, Technological Shift, Revenue, Business Model

*Ibrahim Siraj, Ph.D., is a Lecturer in the Department of Mass Communication, Faculty of Communication, Bayero University, Kano, Nigeria.

^AMCRON Journal of Communication and Media Research, Vol. 10, No. 2, October 2018:   104 – 114