More than two decades since launching, the success of the National Indigenous Times is quietly defying industry trends. 

In addition to a digital presence, the small independent, 100 per cent Aboriginal-owned organisation produces multiple physical publications at a profit. 

How? Ads and a savvy distribution model. 

Australian news publishers at large are dealing with dropping ad spend, down 6.1 per cent year-on-year overall, and -7 per cent for newspapers specifically, according to Guideline SMI’s January figures. 

But the National Indigenous Times is managing to cover expenses and make “a little bit of a margin” with a business model “entirely based on advertising”, National Indigenous Times Group managing director Reece Harley says.  

He tells PIJI convincing businesses to part with their money is “always a challenge”, but the organisation’s focus on Indigenous affairs interests many corporates. 

“We do a lot of reporting on issues around native title, land use management, the resources sector,” Harley says. 

“So naturally we have gone to companies who are doing business on Aboriginal land, and we’ve pitched to them advertising to try and reach our audience.” 

The organisation’s national distribution model also plays a role in attracting large, “expensive” advertising campaigns. 

Currently, the National Indigenous Times monthly newspaper is an insert in seven mainstream mastheads around the country: The West Australian, the Daily Telegraph, Courier Mail, Herald Sun, NT News, The Advertiser and The Mercury. 

The organisation’s Indigenous Business Review bimonthly magazine is inserted in The Australian and The West Australian, and available in Qantas lounges. 

This distribution model puts the print publications into the hands of millions of readers around the country, Harley says. 

All content remains free to read online, a decision Harley says was made to reach the broadest audience possible as many readers don’t have enough disposable income to afford subscriptions. 

“If you’re a 15-year-old kid living in Wyndham, we don’t want to put a paywall between you and reading the sports pages or reading about your local government, or accessing our stories for your school report,” he says. 

“That isn’t something that we want to do, but we do have the ability for people to sign up to receive a print copy of our newspaper and magazine in their mailbox so they can pay for the cost of postage and handling to be able to receive print copies if they want to.” 

Shrinking newsrooms a constant spectre 

The National Indigenous Times employs about 11 full-time staff and 10 regular contributors across Australia, the majority of whom are Aboriginal, Harley says. 

Writers cover everything from social justice to fashion, producing about 140 stories a week. Harley explains the overall aim is to bring Indigenous voices, stories and perspectives to mainstream audiences. 

Although it previously entered voluntary administration in 2015 under different ownership before being sold in 2016, the publication is not in immediate danger. 

But Harley says he wakes up every day thinking about revenue, advertising, partnerships and sponsorships; how to do more with less as he witnesses Australia’s media landscape “dramatically” shrink. 

“Hundreds of local newspapers have closed, just in recent times, and so you’re seeing a lot less access to public interest journalism at a local level,” he says. 

“Newsrooms which have continued to operate have also shrunk in size. I have the privilege of going into some very big newsrooms across the country for meetings, and often they’re quite empty.  

“So I’m seeing that even though there’s substantial buildings and assets, there’s not that many people in these newsrooms anymore. That is a real concern, because with fewer journalists comes less transparency and accountability.” 

Harley says news organisations need to work to be more self-sufficient, which includes building more direct relationships with readers to avoid relying on social media.  

But he says there is a role for the government to provide funding “at arm’s length” in support of public interest journalism. 

Government support needs to go further 

The National Indigenous Times received a grant of $143,000 between February 2025 and January 2026 as part of the News Media Relief Program – a contribution Harley says was “very valuable” but “nowhere near enough”. 

He says the publication was unable to apply for the recent Journalism Assistance Fund before allocations were exhausted – an indication, he says, that the funding was not enough.

To avoid a repeat situation, the National Indigenous Times began preparing an application for the upcoming News Innovation Fund before guidelines became available.

Before Meta walked away from Australian news publishing deals in 2024, Harley says the National Indigenous Times was among the many small publishers that missed out as the tech giant focused on bigger organisations. 

He doesn’t think the proposed News Bargaining Incentive will make any difference, especially given the close ties between tech companies and the US Trump administration.  

“They’ll just simply refuse to pay any money. Because these companies are all American companies, I think the United States will use their muscle to just avoid having to come to the table whatsoever,” he says. 

Like the rest of the industry, the National Indigenous Times is also facing the threat of AI platforms using the publisher’s free news to provide content to their own users, without agreements or compensation. 

Harley says AI’s large language models already represent about six per cent of the publisher’s digital traffic, a figure that will “inevitably” grow. 

Despite tougher industry conditions, the National Indigenous Times continues to fight to remain sustainable and free. 

“I can’t really overstate just how important we are,” Harley says. 

“If we did not exist, most of the stories that we write about would not be covered at all.” 

 Sezen Bakan