When the Kokstad Advertiser posted its first online story about a missing seven-year-old girl, the piece was read by more than three hundred thousand people in a single month. The surge came after the newspaper, a 144-year-old print title, received support from the Digital News Transformation Fund (DNTF) and launched a basic website in March.
According to the DNTF’s half-year progress report, the fund has allocated R10.5m to 21 independent newsrooms between January and June 2026. The money is meant to help small publishers move from print-only operations to digital platforms, grow their audiences and eventually earn money beyond grants.
How the fund works
The DNTF groups publishers into three maturity levels. “Build” is for newsrooms that have no digital presence, “Grow” is for those that already have a site or social channels, and “Engage” is for publishers that are experimenting with new revenue models. Ten of the 11 Build-tier outlets have now launched a website or digital platform. In addition to the Kokstad Advertiser, Stokvel Media Hub grew its TikTok following from three hundred forty-four to almost six thousand in three months.
Publishers in the Grow tier have focused on expanding reach. The Highveld Chronicle in Mpumalanga lifted its Facebook audience by 233 per cent, moving from roughly three hundred thousand to more than one million monthly users. It also added isiNdebele radio content that reaches a similar number of listeners each week. Xenor Projects, which runs three community mastheads south of Johannesburg, reported a combined digital audience of 1.7 million people, aided by QR-code stickers placed in taxis that let commuters download editions directly to their phones.
Revenue experiments
Among the most digitally mature publishers, explain.co.za turned a modest start of about three thousand eight hundred users in January into more than sixty thousand by May. The site now generates over half of its income from reader memberships, digital marketing services and video monetisation partnerships, according to the fund’s report.
These examples show that the DNTF is not only helping newsrooms reach more readers, but also encouraging them to test ways of earning money online. For small business owners, the growth of local digital news platforms could open new advertising channels that target specific towns or language groups.
Community impact
Beyond numbers, the fund’s support has led to tangible community outcomes. In the Eastern Cape, Eagle Eye News investigated complaints about hiring practices at Burgersdorp Correctional Services. A community petition followed, and within three months the department began a renovation project that prioritised local youth employment. In Lenasia South, Zini Advertising’s flood coverage reinforced official safety warnings and sparked discussion about drainage infrastructure. Inkundla Yezindaba’s “One Community, One Voice” campaign gave residents of Inanda, Ntuzuma and KwaMashu a platform to raise development concerns with local officials.
A voluntary survey of eighty-seven readers found that seventy-two per cent said local news coverage had prompted them to take some form of action, while seventy-one per cent said they mostly or completely trusted their main news source.
Challenges ahead
The fund’s managers warn that turning digital reach into sustainable revenue will take time. Small publishers still face hurdles such as limited staff capacity, unreliable internet connectivity, weak financial systems and governance issues. These areas will be the focus of the second half of the year’s programme.
Kate Skinner, executive director of the African Internet Partnership, said the fund is “providing the spark to get projects going”. Mar, a spokesperson for Google, described the early audience growth as “highly encouraging” and expressed interest in watching how the platforms evolve.
For entrepreneurs and SME owners, the story offers a glimpse of how modest public funding can catalyse digital transformation in a sector that traditionally relies on print advertising. While the road to profitability is still long, the early results suggest that community newsrooms can become viable digital partners for local businesses seeking to reach engaged audiences.
