The Northern Star newspaper will stop printing newspapers from June 29 it has been announced today by Executive Chairman Michael Miller. Along with the same announcement the Lismore Echo will cease printing also.

The Northern Star has long history in the Lismore community first printing a newspaper in 1876. The Northern Star was owned and operated by a local community consortium until it was purchased by APN who then sold the business to Rupert Murdochs News Corp media empire in 2016.

(Chief Executive of News Corp Michael Miller)

The reported last newspaper will roll off the press on June 29.

News Corp has decided to restructure their entire print business which will mean the loss of hundreds of jobs as printing press stops on more than 100 print offerings. The Sydney Morning Herald have said that regional and community news roles were previously about 1200 with todays statement saying 375 roles will now cover their regional news and community news across the country.

What these job losses mean across Lismore and the Northern Rivers is unsure. The Lismore App has put in a call to Northern Star General Manager Rod Harris, at the time of publication Mr Harris has not returned the call.

While the physical newspaper will cease to exist the Northern Star will move to a digital based platform, similar to the Lismore App.

Mr Miller said "Over recent months we have undertaken a comprehensive review of our regional and community newspapers. This review considered the ongoing consumer shift to reading and subscribing news online, and the acceleration of businesses using digital advertising."

"Our portfolio review highlighted that many of our print mastheads were challenged, and the doubler impact of COVID-19 and the tech platforms not remunerating the local publisher whose content they profit from, has, unfortunately, made them unsustainable publications."

While it is a loss of history to Lismore and the Northern Rivers community this outcome was inevitable as time and changes in technology made printing a newspaper unsustainable.