# What all sources of revenue do/did newspapers have **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 22, 2019, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-all-sources-of-revenue-do-did-newspapers-have/845220 "2019-12-22T03:26:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-all-sources-of-revenue-do-did-newspapers-have/845220/1 "2019-12-22T03:26:43Z")
How did newspapers make money in their heyday? I’m guessing they had multiple revenue streams. Subscriptions and purchase price. Ad revenue Classifieds ads revenue. Do newspapers charge stores who put their flyers in the Sunday paper? I would assume they did. ---
**Author:** ![VOW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/vow/32/3043_2.png) [@VOW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VOW)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-all-sources-of-revenue-do-did-newspapers-have/845220/2 "2019-12-22T03:43:41Z")
Some newspapers charge for obituaries. The really nice one I wrote for my Daddy cost me a thousand bucks to run in the paper. (Daddy was worth it, though…) ~VOW ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-all-sources-of-revenue-do-did-newspapers-have/845220/3 "2019-12-22T04:15:31Z")
Some newspapers syndicated their content (columnists, cartoonists, crossword puzzles, etc) to other papers, making some money that way. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-all-sources-of-revenue-do-did-newspapers-have/845220/4 "2019-12-22T04:17:02Z")
Yes, those flyers in the (usually) Sunday paper are/were a big revenue stream. They are called inserts. As far as print goes, OP pretty much nailed it. Display advertising, classified advertising, inserts. Our newspaper sometimes did some job printing either to run as inserts in our paper or for other purposes, but inserts generally came to us preprinted, and we didn’t make much money from job printing. For our paper, if I recall correctly, total advertising revenue was around 70%-80% of total revenue. Circulation revenue includes both paid subscriptions and single paper sales, and that accounted for the other 20%-30% of total revenue. OP asked about the heyday of newspapers, which ended with the advent of craigslist and online classifieds, around 2000. After that, everything changed. It’s always hard to get people to understand the difference between a paid funeral notice, and an obituary. An obituary is a news story, written and edited entirely by the news department, which also decides whether someone merits an obituary or not, generally based on the newsworthiness of the deceased person. A funeral notice is paid for, usually by the family (occasionally there are battling funeral notices, one from the wife and one from the girlfriend, for example) and within broad limits the family can say whatever they want. The paid death and/or funeral notices are usually considered part of classified ad revenue. ---
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-all-sources-of-revenue-do-did-newspapers-have/845220/5 "2019-12-22T04:41:45Z")
The revenue stream is similar or magazines. Ad revenue, subscriptions, paid feature articles. When a local business magazine runs a feature article or congratulatory spot about someone getting a promotion, I see a bill in accounting. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-all-sources-of-revenue-do-did-newspapers-have/845220/6 "2019-12-22T05:52:04Z")
Gannett has a subsidiary RAGBRAI (Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa). [Register refers to Des Moines [Iowa] Register] Bicycle riders are charged fees and there are advertising sponsors). I expect many newspapers do somewhat similar promotions (both promoting the newspaper and making the newspaper a little money) ---
**Author:** ![Alley\_Dweller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alley_dweller/32/430_2.png) [@Alley\_Dweller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alley_Dweller)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 10:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-all-sources-of-revenue-do-did-newspapers-have/845220/7 "2019-12-22T10:10:17Z")
Newspaper reporters frequently appear on CNN or MSNBC either to talk about an article that recently ran (or is about to run) or to be part of a panel that discusses a news topic. Does the newspaper get paid for this? For that matter does the reporter get paid or is that just part of the job? Or both? Newspaper reporters also appear on the Sunday morning talk shows on the major networks and the Friday afternoon talk shows on PBS. Who, if anyone, gets paid there? ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-all-sources-of-revenue-do-did-newspapers-have/845220/8 "2019-12-22T13:03:00Z")
Another form of paying for space are legal notices. Since the paper has to be extra careful to get all that right, they are often treated separately from the regular ads and a different tier of fees and rules apply. Does Parade magazine pay newspapers to include it in their Sunday editions? ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-all-sources-of-revenue-do-did-newspapers-have/845220/9 "2019-12-22T14:36:51Z")
pretty standard now to charge for obituaries and wedding announcements. For my father the obit was about $700 but it was longer than most. They will list a death for free here locally. Classifieds were a big source of revenue and that’s almost all gone now due to craigslist and other sites. Craigslist does not allowing selling of pets so those ads are still in the local paper. ---
**Author:** ![Flyer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/flyer/32/7298_2.png) [@Flyer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flyer)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-all-sources-of-revenue-do-did-newspapers-have/845220/10 "2019-12-22T15:16:15Z")
> [@Roderick\_Femm](#): > > It’s always hard to get people to understand the difference between a paid funeral notice, and an obituary. An obituary is a news story, written and edited entirely by the news department, which also decides whether someone merits an obituary or not, generally based on the newsworthiness of the deceased person. A funeral notice is paid for, usually by the family (occasionally there are battling funeral notices, one from the wife and one from the girlfriend, for example) and within broad limits the family can say whatever they want. So what do you call the thing that is read aloud at the funeral service? I’ve never heard that called anything but an obituary. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-all-sources-of-revenue-do-did-newspapers-have/845220/11 "2019-12-22T15:43:45Z")
People read aloud the printed funeral notices/obituaries at funerals? Granted, I’ve only been to a very few but I’ve never heard of that. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-all-sources-of-revenue-do-did-newspapers-have/845220/12 "2019-12-22T16:16:34Z")
> [@Flyer](#): > > So what do you call the thing that is read aloud at the funeral service? I’ve never heard that called anything but an obituary. The eulogy? ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-all-sources-of-revenue-do-did-newspapers-have/845220/13 "2019-12-22T16:21:35Z")
also never heard of an obit read at a funeral. The eulogy is usually much longer than a written obit and is done by the priest/minister/rabbi , etc and friends and family. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-all-sources-of-revenue-do-did-newspapers-have/845220/14 "2019-12-22T16:22:39Z")
I agree; the thing read aloud or ad libbed at the funeral is a eulogy. But it’s different from a funeral notice (which is generally a dry recitation of facts) or an obituary, which is more like a biography. Usually newspaper obits are of notable people and are written by the newspaper’s own staff. (For prominent people, many newspapers and TV networks have obituaries ready to go.) ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-all-sources-of-revenue-do-did-newspapers-have/845220/15 "2019-12-22T18:34:01Z")
> [@lingyi](#): > > The revenue stream is similar or magazines. Ad revenue, subscriptions, paid feature articles. When a local business magazine runs a feature article or congratulatory spot about someone getting a promotion, I see a bill in accounting. Any publication that does this, unless the feature “article” is clearly labeled as advertising, is breaking what is supposed to be the sacrosanct line between news and advertising, wherein the news is supposed to be not affected by the influence of advertisers. I didn’t work in accounting, but I did see the revenue budget for several years and there was no line item for this. Those business items about promotions in local businesses were supposed to be newsworthy. Admittedly I am a geezer and old-fashioned into the bargain, so that line may have been erased years ago and I never knew. But as far as I ever heard at my paper, we took that line very seriously. Big advertisers who complained about a news story, for whatever reason, got a lot of soft soap but no real satisfaction. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-all-sources-of-revenue-do-did-newspapers-have/845220/16 "2019-12-22T19:27:25Z")
Our newspaper has an entire Sunday supplement section devoted to buying things, written to look like actual articles but showcasing specific products. “The 10 Best Things to Wear This Fall!”, etc. It’s labeled as an advertising section, but it mimics the regular newspaper layout. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2019, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-all-sources-of-revenue-do-did-newspapers-have/845220/17 "2019-12-23T00:52:11Z")
You forget all the money newspapers make from blackmailing local politicians and business owners since their reporters have dug up tons of incriminating evidence on them. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2019, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-all-sources-of-revenue-do-did-newspapers-have/845220/18 "2019-12-23T00:58:55Z")
In smaller towns the newspaper was/is often the local printer. They also did signs, wedding invitations, directories, and anything else the local folk needed. ---
**Author:** ![Backwater\_Under\_Duck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ba8739/32.png) [@Backwater\_Under\_Duck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Backwater_Under_Duck)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2019, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-all-sources-of-revenue-do-did-newspapers-have/845220/19 "2019-12-25T05:42:49Z")
Classified ads. That was a major source of revenue for all city newspapers. I’m retired now, about 3 years earlier than I had hoped, because the internet killed classified advertising. ---
**Author:** ![actualliberalnotoneofthose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e79b87/32.png) [@actualliberalnotoneofthose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/actualliberalnotoneofthose)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2019, 9:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-all-sources-of-revenue-do-did-newspapers-have/845220/20 "2019-12-25T09:47:32Z")
> [@Backwater\_Under\_Duck](#): > > Classified ads. That was a major source of revenue for all city newspapers. I’m retired now, about 3 years earlier than I had hoped, because the internet killed classified advertising. I’m not disagreeing but newspapers had 20+ years to adapt in some way and most made little effort. I have a close relative who lost a 35 year career as an editor, so I sympathize. But I remember as far back as 2000 or earlier thinking that newspapers (and other media) spent way too much effort either pretending times weren’t changing or criticizing competitors who obviously were going to beat them out on new revenue streams. When they got online, the websites were usually terrible and not user friendly and they tried to keep old ways intact without embracing the possibilities of new media. Some of this holds true even to this day. People, from soloprenuers, to huge corporations, still make money from publishing and advertising today. I think newspapers as we knew them would have died out anyway, but I think they missed the boat on other ways to monetize good content and professional journalism. Plus there were all kinds of other business decisions and mergers and buyouts that made very cheap and misguided attempts to compete with “the internet” by basically doing a worse job at it. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-all-sources-of-revenue-do-did-newspapers-have/845220.md?page=2)