From the morning paper to the evening news, the media industry is in crisis. After a decade struggling with internet-enabled changes in consumer behaviour, a precipitous slide in advertising and consumer spending has humbled media owners from Hollywood to Fleet Street.

The litany of woe is now familiar: companies as diverse as Setanta Sports, the sports broadcaster, and Reader’s Digest, the magazine publisher, have tumbled into bankruptcy proceedings, while publications from Portfolio magazine to thelondonpaper have folded.