What is NewsBreak?
How much money can writers make with the NewsBreak Creator Program?
For writers looking for new ways to make money in 2022, NewsBreak could very well be the next big thing. The digital publishing platform has picked up steam in recent times and seems set to become a major player in the news aggregation industry going forward. What exactly is News Break all about, and what opportunities does it present for writers? In this article, you will get answers to those questions, and then some.
What is News Break?
NewsBreak describes itself as “the number 1 local news aggregator in the United States…delivering up-to-the-minute local news that matters to locals in neighborhoods throughout the nation.”
The Silicon Valley-based company was founded in 2015 by Jeff Zheng, a media veteran from China and former head of Yahoo Labs Beijing, along with Ren Xuyang, a Baidu former executive. Lamenting the focus on international news by most media houses, the platform seeks to bridge the gap between the demand for relevant local content and the availability of it (or lack thereof).
The site was founded in 2015 but truly took off in 2019. Since January of that year, the News Break app has been ranked several times as the number one news app on both Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play Store.
NewsBreak has also seen close to a doubling of its user base, moving from 23 million to 45 million monthly active users within a year, and currently reports 1.5 billion page views per month.
Amidst the Coronavirus outbreak in March 2020, the News Break app became the third most downloaded iOS app in the U.S., a feat which has attracted attention from the wider public and resulted in new investors coming on board. It has also been posited as a major opportunity for content creators across the country, particularly as it relates to its Creators Program.
Already, NewsBreak boasts a community of over 10,000 content creators and is actively seeking to bring in new writers while providing a reliable source of income via its business model. The enormous growth potential of the Creators Program has resulted in comparisons being drawn between NewsBreak and its competitor, Medium, as well as coverage in major publications such as Tech Crunch. If you are a writer seeking new opportunities for exposure and increasing your income, you might be interested in learning more about the Creators Program offered by News Break.
Using News Break
Although criticized by some online users, the reading experience on the News Break app has mostly received positive feedback, based on its App Store and Play Store ratings. In addition, the NewsBreak app is prompt in serving up real-time local news and weather, as well as timely updates on the Coronavirus situation, and even personalized neighborhood happenings.
When it comes on to the user experience for contributors, content creators on the platform have generally given the creator interface a thumbs up. Creating posts is said to be easy and intuitive while providing all the necessary editing tools to easily produce legible posts. Keeping track of your progress on the platform is also relatively straightforward. Your access includes a robust dashboard that allows you to easily view data on the performance of individual posts, as well as overall analytics.
What is the News Break Content Creator Program?
Launched in October 2020, the News Break Content Creator Program is designed to encourage a new generation of talented individuals to share locally based content with the News Break community.
With News Break reaching 45 million users across the web, iOS, and Android, this program allows content creators to reach a diverse and vast reader base no matter what they are passionate about. Whether it be sport, fashion, travel, literature, food, or gaming, the Content Creator Program allows them to reach an audience of truly interested people.
The Content Creator Program also offers writers an opportunity to get paid for the work they produce. For the writers who qualify, News Break offers a guaranteed minimum monthly payment, payments based on page views, so you benefit if your article goes viral, and referral bonuses if you refer readers and creators.
How Do You Join the News Break Creator Program?
To join the News Break Content Creator Program, you will need to submit your application providing your name, email, and links to your social media profiles and/or writing samples, and wait for an approval response.
They state that they will respond with your approval status within 5–7 days, so you won’t have to wait long. In my case, I heard back within 24 hours, through the email seen below:
Once you have signed the contract (and News Break countersigns), you will be prompted to create a writer account:
This process is simple and only takes a few minutes, and requires you to answer just a few basic questions:
Note: I did have some trouble moving from step 2 to step 3 (I was told my username was “already in use” which I’m assuming is a bug). To bypass this error message, I clicked on the red icon in the upper right hand corner of the page.
Once you set up your account, you can start writing your pieces on the secure Creator Portal.
Your content will need to pass the editorial principles check before publication, but once it has been approved, News Break will notify you that the piece is live.
Once the piece is live, you can track the article’s performance through your dashboard, and you’ll receive your earnings by direct deposit. Over time, you can work to grow your following and your income.
The News Break writing module is fairly intuitive, especially if you already are a Medium writer:
One unique feature about News Break, that I have not seen implemented at all (let alone well) on other platforms, is the mobile first article preview. Basically, since News Break derives most of its traffic through the app, they allow users to preview their article, as it would render on mobile devices:
How Much Do You Get Paid on News Break?
The amount you get paid on News Break depends on how active you are on the platform. They offer a guaranteed payment of $1,000 per month, as long as you meet certain requirements.
Beyond the minimum monthly payment, you’ll receive revenue based on the number of page views, as well as any additional bonuses you earn from referrals.
News Break offers a further monetary incentive for creators in the form of prize money during special promotions or creator challenges.
Since this is still a relatively new program, it is thought that News Break may reduce some of these incentives and perks as they build up their number of quality creators, so it literally pays to get in there early if you believe the Content Creator Program is for you.
What are the Pros & Cons of the Content Creator Program?
So, now we know what News Break’s Content Creator Program has to offer, let’s look at the pros and cons.
Pros
- You can get paid for your work within a month of joining. If you’re looking to start a new career as a writer, this is a good way to get a big-name client on your list.
- You’ll receive the view benefits of an established site: You don’t just get paid for the one article you produce. You also gain some of the ad revenue benefits from that article. If you were to set up a new blog today, getting those same benefits would take you years to build up.
- Freedom to write what you’re passionate about: You’ll be able to cover the topics you are most passionate about. Unless you’re a full-time blogger or author, that’s something very few people get to do!
- You’ll have access to a huge audience: Have you ever dreamed of your article being read by thousands or even millions of people? That’s possible, thanks to News Break’s platform.
Cons
- New platform: As with any new digital publishing platform, there is some risk that the platform may not succeed or run into issues that are outside the writer’s control. However, this risk is largely mitigated by News Break’s fairly generous payments to writers.
Who is the News Break Content Creator Program Best For?
News Break will be best for:
- Those looking to make a career change
- Established writers looking for a bigger audience and/or more freedom to write what they’re passionate about
- Writers with spare time and want to earn a guaranteed $1,000 in an additional income
- Writers and journalists with an abundance of ideas
Conclusion
It is still too early to completely evaluate News Break and its Creators Program. However, there are indications that writers joining the platform can unearth real earning opportunities and recognition among their peers. The NewsBreak Content Creator Program is a great way to get your writing out to a much wider and diverse audience, making a name for yourself, as well as bringing in some extra income.
The concept of providing writers with a guaranteed monthly payment is a concept I have suggested to various blogging platforms, but News Break is the only one to implement this feature.
Already touting a monthly active user base of 45 million, as well as 1.5 billion page views, News Break is growing at an exponential pace. The Creators Program is an opportunity that is probably worth checking out for growth-oriented writers.
As is true on most digital publishing platforms, the Creators Program will likely become less accessible to new writers as time goes on, so if you have any desire to try out the platform, I’d recommend taking 5–10 minutes to submit a writer application.
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Casey Botticello is an internet entrepreneur and the founder of Blogging Guide, an online community of writers with an award-winning newsletter. He is also the creator of the popular Medium Writing Course and the Substack Newsletter Course.
Casey previously worked at several tech startups, a lobbying & strategic communications firm, and has created several businesses of his own. He is a graduate of The University of Pennsylvania, where he received his B.A. in Urban Studies.
You can connect with him on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, follow his Medium publications, Digital Marketing Lab and Medium Blogging Guide, or reach out to him directly on his personal website.