Study of the transformation of business models in journalism

Thesis: S.M. in Engineering and Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, System Design and Management Program, May, 2020Cataloged from the official version of thesis.Includes bibliographical references (pages 62-64).The past three decades have been exciting yet challenging times for journalism. Thanks to massive advancements in technical capability, journalists were able to reach global audiences and produce more diverse, insightful and powerful reporting. However, the Internet also profoundly disrupted long-established business models and proved journalism to be a seemingly unprofitable venture. Major revenue streams have been in staggering decline. As a result, newsrooms were forced to shrink their staff and ambitions, and the general public was losing access to accurate and important information. It is urgent to examine the limitations of current models and envision possible paths forward, as journalism is crucial to building and maintaining healthy civic discourses, a robust public sphere, and a well-functioning democratic society. This thesis intends to focus on independent news media, primarily legacy newspapers, in contemporary liberal democracies in the U.S. and Europe. It aims to answer the following questions, with each detailed in its respective chapter: how has the Internet reshaped the news business; what are the current major revenue streams (e.g., advertising and subscription) as well as the lesser-known, emerging monetization methods (e.g., micropayment and service bundling); and how do new business models drive organizational design and product thinking, in the lens of digital subscriptions.by Xiaoyu Yan.S.M. in Engineering and ManagementS.M.inEngineeringandManagement Massachusetts Institute of Technology, System Design and Management Progra