When the Newspapers Disappear, Democracy Goes Quiet
By Huw Marshall
The most recent circulation figures for newspapers in Wales were published this week (16 February 2026), and they confirm a continued decline in print readership. The figures make it impossible to ignore. Local newspapers in Wales haven’t just declined – they’ve collapsed.
Since 2004, the combined circulation of the six (now five following the merger of the Rhondda and Cynon Valley Leaders) valleys newspaper titles tracked in these figures has fallen from 91,761 copies a week to just 928 at the end of 2025 – a 98.99% drop. The Western Mail, once a staple in homes across the west and south, has shrunk from 43,247 in 2004 to 3,720 in 2025 (down 91.4%). Some Valley titles now sell in double digits: the Gwent Gazette is down to 77 copies a week, and the Pontypridd & Llantrisant Observer to 89.
At these levels, many of these publications can no longer be deemed as viable going concerns. Some argue they only continue to exist in print because it helps publishers qualify for statutory public notice advertising – meaning local authorities and other public bodies can end up paying to publish legal notices in papers that reach only a handful of readers. When a title sells fewer than 80 copies a week, the public value of this system is hard to justify, and the cost is ultimately borne by council taxpayers.
The South Wales Valleys are home to almost a third of Wales’s population. They are places with strong identities, proud histories, and communities shaped by shared experiences. But increasingly, they exist without regular, independent local journalism. When newspapers disappear, so too does the consistent scrutiny of local councils, health boards, police, and public services.
Research from Ofcom shows that traditional news consumption in Wales has steadily shifted away from print. Newspapers, once the primary source of local information, now reach only a small minority of people. Instead, audiences have moved online towards websites, social media, and messaging platforms. The Reuters Institute’s Digital News Report confirms this trend across the UK: most people now access news via smartphones, and many encounter news incidentally through platforms like Facebook rather than by actively seeking it out from trusted publishers.
This shift has consequences.
When people don’t regularly engage with professional journalism, awareness of local decision-making declines. Council decisions affecting housing, education, and public services receive less scrutiny. Political accountability weakens. Turnout in local elections often falls. People feel disconnected from the institutions that shape their lives.
In the Valleys, this problem is particularly acute. These communities already face economic challenges, lower average incomes, and fewer resources. The loss of local newspapers compounds this by creating what researchers call “news deserts”, areas with little or no original reporting on local issues.
In the past, local newspapers acted as part of the democratic infrastructure. They attended council meetings, questioned decisions, and provided a shared source of verified information. They connected communities and helped people understand what was happening around them.
Today, much of that has vanished.
This does not mean people are less interested in news. Ofcom’s research also shows that people still care deeply about local issues. But the way they access information has changed. News is fragmented, often consumed in isolation, and mixed with opinion, rumour, and misinformation. Social media can spread information quickly, but it rarely replaces the systematic, reliable reporting that newspapers once provided.
The challenge now is not simply to mourn the decline of print, but to recognise what has been lost and what must be rebuilt.
Wales needs new models of local journalism designed for the digital age. Community-focused, online-first, and rooted in the places they serve. Journalism that meets people where they are, on their phones, in their communities, and in their daily lives.
Because democracy does not function in silence.
Without trusted local news, power goes unchecked. Communities go unheard. And the places that most need a voice risk losing it altogether.
The future of Welsh democracy depends on rebuilding that voice.