Those who still cling to the pleasure of leafing through a newspaper or solving a crossword puzzle in the shade of a coconut tree know that digital technology cannot replace everything. It's true that the world is moving towards screens, but this transition is not smooth, and above all, it's not universal. Digital technology presupposes widespread access to the Internet and a comfort with technologies that not everyone has mastered. In Polynesia, where some islands are still far from modern infrastructures, digital cannot absorb everything. This means that some readers will be deprived of an essential source of information and a link with the outside world.
For Polynesian newsagents, the financial impact will be immediate. Deprived of almost 20% of their sales, they will have to reinvent themselves, or risk not surviving the change. Far from being a simple product withdrawal, the end of the national paper press also means the loss of a convivial space, where young and old alike can meet, discuss and exchange views on their favorite daily newspaper.
But over and above economic and social considerations, it's the diversity of information choices that is at stake. If everything has to go through digital subscriptions from now on, those who have neither the means nor the mastery of these tools will simply lose access to newspapers. The digital transition of the press could well turn into a divide in access to knowledge.
Today, the relocation of advertising investments represents a strategic lever for saving the press, threatened by the concentration of advertising revenues in the hands of the Net giants. By redirecting a share of advertising revenues to traditional media, the press could regain vital resources to maintain its independence, diversify its content and secure jobs in a struggling sector.
This approach would restore the place of local media in an environment saturated by digital platforms, often favored by tax optimization policies that work against national players. Relocating advertising budgets, through appropriate regulation and incentives for advertisers, could give the press the financial impetus it needs to reinvent and modernize itself, and continue to fulfill its fundamental role: providing independent, accessible information.
