Business infrastructure, not business models

“It’s time to stop talking about a new business model — because there is no new business model that will magically make journalism financially sustainable.”

It doesn’t matter if your news organization is a for-profit, nonprofit, collaborative, or cooperative: One unavoidable fact is that all news organizations must generate enough revenue to be sustainable. It’s time to stop talking about a new business model — because there is no new business model that will magically make journalism financially sustainable.

In 2022, successful news organizations of all varieties will stop talking about business models. Instead, there will be a focus on building up business infrastructure — to support journalism products that people will pay for and to improve their operational excellence. Three areas of focus:

Build products and not models: It’s no secret that traditional revenue sources in journalism are becoming less dependable. There’s an urgent need for news organizations to diversify those sources. While philanthropy and major gifts from high net-worth donors are up, it’s not a long-term strategy and should be treated as catalytic investment to help grow the organization.

For example, The Markup, a nonprofit that investigates how powerful institutions are using technology to change society, developed Blacklight, a custom tool that scans how websites you visit track your every digital move. It’s services like Blacklight that can create new value for customers that goes beyond journalism. In 2022, more news organizations will focus on developing revenue-generating products and services that are not solely dependent on donor dollars or reader revenue.

Journalism with an equality lens: Let’s face it. Most mainstream journalism is created through a white lens. From reporting on a “hot food trend” called boba tea to an exposé on employment bias against African-American candidates, mainstream news organizations have a tendency to report news from communities of color as exotic or something new. Trust me, Asians already know boba tea is a thing, and Blacks won’t be shocked by the news that employment bias exists.

This past year, Public Integrity has scaled our collaboration with BIPOC news organizations. To avoid the effects of parachute journalism and other harmful practices, Public Integrity is evaluating and assessing assumptions and pitfalls so that we can avoid creating unintentional harm to our partners. We are also turning lessons learned into internal best practices so that we can better serve underrepresented communities. In 2022, more news organizations, mostly nonprofits, will center their reporting from the community’s perspective by not making assumptions about groups of underrepresented people or leaning into problematic narratives.

Invest in operational excellence: Look at some of the most successful news organizations and you’ll see roles like head of partnerships, chief strategy officer, chief of staff, head of culture, head of philanthropy, head of product, and more. These news organizations understand that having great journalists producing great journalism won’t make them sustainable. It literally takes a village to make a news organization sustainable. In 2022, you’ll see a proliferation of new roles designed to support the business of journalism and more investment in technology that advances our reach and our understanding of how the audience interacts with our content.

It doesn’t matter if your news organization is a for-profit, nonprofit, collaborative, or cooperative: One unavoidable fact is that all news organizations must generate enough revenue to be sustainable. It’s time to stop talking about a new business model — because there is no new business model that will magically make journalism financially sustainable.

In 2022, successful news organizations of all varieties will stop talking about business models. Instead, there will be a focus on building up business infrastructure — to support journalism products that people will pay for and to improve their operational excellence. Three areas of focus:

Build products and not models: It’s no secret that traditional revenue sources in journalism are becoming less dependable. There’s an urgent need for news organizations to diversify those sources. While philanthropy and major gifts from high net-worth donors are up, it’s not a long-term strategy and should be treated as catalytic investment to help grow the organization.

For example, The Markup, a nonprofit that investigates how powerful institutions are using technology to change society, developed Blacklight, a custom tool that scans how websites you visit track your every digital move. It’s services like Blacklight that can create new value for customers that goes beyond journalism. In 2022, more news organizations will focus on developing revenue-generating products and services that are not solely dependent on donor dollars or reader revenue.

Journalism with an equality lens: Let’s face it. Most mainstream journalism is created through a white lens. From reporting on a “hot food trend” called boba tea to an exposé on employment bias against African-American candidates, mainstream news organizations have a tendency to report news from communities of color as exotic or something new. Trust me, Asians already know boba tea is a thing, and Blacks won’t be shocked by the news that employment bias exists.

This past year, Public Integrity has scaled our collaboration with BIPOC news organizations. To avoid the effects of parachute journalism and other harmful practices, Public Integrity is evaluating and assessing assumptions and pitfalls so that we can avoid creating unintentional harm to our partners. We are also turning lessons learned into internal best practices so that we can better serve underrepresented communities. In 2022, more news organizations, mostly nonprofits, will center their reporting from the community’s perspective by not making assumptions about groups of underrepresented people or leaning into problematic narratives.

Invest in operational excellence: Look at some of the most successful news organizations and you’ll see roles like head of partnerships, chief strategy officer, chief of staff, head of culture, head of philanthropy, head of product, and more. These news organizations understand that having great journalists producing great journalism won’t make them sustainable. It literally takes a village to make a news organization sustainable. In 2022, you’ll see a proliferation of new roles designed to support the business of journalism and more investment in technology that advances our reach and our understanding of how the audience interacts with our content.

Sam Guzik

Tamar Charney

Mary Walter-Brown

Rasmus Kleis Nielsen

Mandy Jenkins

Tom Trewinnard

Victor Pickard

Daniel Eilemberg

Jody Brannon

Shalabh Upadhyay

Paul Cheung

Raney Aronson-Rath

Kristen Jeffers

Brian Moritz

Julia Angwin

Jennifer Brandel

Laxmi Parthasarathy

Michael W. Wagner

Cherian George

Jesenia De Moya Correa

Kathleen Searles & Rebekah Trumble

Robert Hernandez

Mario García

Joanne McNeil

AX Mina

S. Mitra Kalita

Stefanie Murray

Rachel Glickhouse

Don Day

Sarah Marshall

Joy Mayer

Ariel Zirulnick

Ståle Grut

Anika Anand

Catalina Albeanu

Whitney Phillips

Jesse Holcomb

Matt Karolian

Moreno Cruz Osório

Simon Galperin

Simon Allison

Errin Haines

Chase Davis

Amy Schmitz Weiss

Amara Aguilar

David Cohn

Matthew Pressman

j. Siguru Wahutu

John Davidow

Christoph Mergerson

Julia Munslow

Millie Tran

Megan McCarthy

Anita Varma

Mike Rispoli

Eric Nuzum

Stephen Fowler

Kristen Muller

Chicas Poderosas

Francesco Zaffarano

Zizi Papacharissi

Meena Thiruvengadam

Christina Shih

Jennifer Coogan

Tony Baranowski

Richard Tofel

Jonas Kaiser

Anthony Nadler

Gonzalo del Peon

A.J. Bauer

David Skok

James Green

Candace Amos

Kerri Hoffman

Cindy Royal

Burt Herman

Sarah Stonbely

Kendra Pierre-Louis

Gordon Crovitz

Parker Molloy

Joni Deutsch

Doris Truong

Wilson Liévano

Natalia Viana

Jessica Clark

Alice Antheaume

Nik Usher

Andrew Freedman

James Salanga

Juleyka Lantigua

Cristina Tardáguila

Joshua P. Darr

Matt DeRienzo

Izabella Kaminska

Shannon McGregor & Carolyn Schmitt

Larry Ryckman

Joe Amditis

Gabe Schneider

Melody Kramer

Jim Friedlich