Digitalised news and shift to online advertising major reasons for Stabroek News’ closure – Editor-in-Chief

Last Updated on Saturday, 14 February 2026, 0:30 by Writer

The impact of digitalised social media delivery of news, a shift of advertising to online platforms as well as the political environment to a lesser extent have conspired to force the independent privately-owned Stabroek News newspaper to close operations next month after 39 years, Editor-in-Chief Anand Persaud said on Friday.

“The collapse of the advertising market has been a serious issue. You know, there may be some advertisers who did not advertise because they didn’t want to be seen to be affiliated with Stabroek News because that might put them out of favour with the government. 

But generally, what happened here was that over time, both the advertising and subscription market fell away because people were so engrossed on their phones and what they can see in live real-time, newspapers can only provide the next day, 24 hours after, and that became obsolete,” he said. 

He said the large companies like Digicel, One Communications, Banks DIH, Demerara Distillers Limited and Courts have over the years shifted their advertising to online platforms, leaving the newspaper with statutory State advertising, occasional financial statements from the banks, which have to go into a newspaper, and legal notices. “So the collapse of the advertising market has been a serious issue.”

Mr Persaud said the publishing company, Guyana Publications Inc (GPI), is solvent and would be in a position to pay severance and funds from a contributory pension scheme to its 60 staff members. “The newspaper is solvent, is in a position to meet all of its obligations to staff in terms of severance and in terms of unpaid leave and in terms of other things,” he told reporters.

The last edition of the newspaper would be on March 15.

GPI has begun the process to go into voluntary liquidation, Mr Persaud said.

Mr Persaud circulation has dropped from a peak of 40,000 copies on Sundays and 18,000 for the daily edition, but now that is down to about 4,000 to 5,000 copies. “Everybody in the newspaper world has fallen. They’re all grappling with that, too, so it is a fact of life,” he said.

Friday’s announcement to the Stabroek News staff by GPI Board Chairman, Brendan de Caires came less than one month after the Trinidad and Tobago Newsday made known its decision to close after 32 years.

Stabroek News began publishing in 1986 soon after it had become clear that the Desmond Hoyte administration was shifting from his predecessor, Forbes Burnham’s socialist path.

The publication had received initial seed capital from the US National Endowment for Democracy (NED) to pay a Trinidad company to print weekly copies until a printing press was acquired.

Asked whether he believed that changing geopolitics had contributed to Stabroek News‘ fate, Mr Persaud said it was more about market forces here and even in the US where newspapers have been “decimated”. “it has very little to do with how geopolitics might have affected that market. It’s just simply people do not go to buy a newspaper in the morning anymore. Very few people do that,” he said

The veteran Guyanese journalist, who has worked at Stabroek News several decades, said the subscriber base for most newspapers these days are the oldest customers who are dying or migrating and better educated. “Younger readers are just not buying newspapers because they’re not accustomed to that. What they’re accustomed to do is picking up their phone or their tablet in the morning and scrolling, and that is really the thing so I think that’s really the major factor. I don’t think geopolitics go that far in terms of isolating us,” he said.

With the market now dominated by social media and digitialisation that provide so many free openings for people to gather news, Mr Persaud said Stabroek News over the past five years examined a number of options such as going partly digital and maintaining part of the print run but nothing stood out as providing long-term security and a lot of the digital revenues were “ephemeral” and could not be relied upon.

He said GPI preferred to make the tough decision to close operations rather than rely on anyone for financial support. “In the light and in the mode of our being an independent newspaper, what you want to do is to leave with dignity. We want to leave on our feet rather than live on our knees, beholden to anybody and to have to sort of like to be in that position. So, unfortunately, our stint as an independent newspaper has come to an end, but it is very important that this job be continued by others who are in the media. It’s clear that it’s all going to be social media-driven these days, but the role that Stabroek News played between 1986 and now needs to be played by others.

A part from declining sales, Stabroek News was stifled severely under the then Bharrat Jagdeo-led government in 2006 when state advertising was withdrawn from the publication, citing no value for money compared to Kaieteur News at that time.

The advertisements were later restored and a newcomer publication, Guyana Times, owned by his friend Dr Ranjisinghi “Bobby” Ramroop began receiving state advertisements.

Similarly, in 2019 the then A Partnership for National Unity+Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) had cut state advertising to Stabroek News and had largely declined to provide straightforward to that newspaper.

The incumbent Irfaan Ali-led administration owes Stabroek News GY$80 million for advertisements.