Almost a year ago, Journalism.co.uk reported on a $1m, two-year, US local news initiative that sought to help regional news organisations better navigate the biggest problems in the digital era: job cuts and revenue gaps.

To do this, Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism partnered with the Spiegel Research Center and Knight Lab to create the Medill Local News Initiative.

By using 'real-world data' from partnering local news titles - initially, the Chicago Tribune, San Francisco Chronicle and Indianapolis Star - they have already amassed a wealth of research on subscriber habits, the rise of non-profits and diversified revenue models to offer a few examples.

In this week's podcast, we reflect on the key theme so far: the shift from an ad revenue-focused industry to a reader revenue-focused one, and how publishers are responding.

From Spiegel, executive director Tom Collinger and research director Ed Malthouse, joins Tim Franklin, senior associate dean of Medill, to identify what trends will persist and emerge in the year ahead - and they are not exclusive to the US.

Photo credit: Jenna Braunstein of Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism

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