Statistics from the American Press Institute paint a strong picture of the disconnect between news executives and readers that covers

• how much content is valued by execs and readers,
• how easy the two camps think it is to find alternative sources of news; and
• where readers would go if the website was turned off. That last question shows the biggest disconnect,

As reproduced below, an incredible 75% news execs think switching off their websites will drive people to their newspapers. Readers, however, are saying they would go to another local website, with other prominent alternatives including regional and national websites, TV and radio (note that news execs also feel that ‘local media sites’ will benefit but users disagree):

Meanwhile, only 9% of news executives think it would be “very easy” for users to find replacement for the online content their news websites are currently providing. That figure rises to 19% for users themselves, and 52% think it would be “very” or “somewhat” easy (only 31% of news providers share that view).

In case it wasn’t clear from the above, the research looks at the pricing of paywalls and suggests that news executives are making strategic decisions based on a lack of knowledge of the market they’re operating in:

“Current prices for online subscriptions strongly suggest that “convenience” pricing is generally in play, not tied to rigorous price analysis or research into what people are willing to pay. Respondents report a wide range of online subscription charges (from $1 to $27.50 a month), yet they report surprisingly uniform levels of uptake on subscriptions, typically 1% to 3% of print circulation, regardless of price.”