GFR Media, publisher of El Nuevo Día and Primera Hora, confirmed Monday that both papers will move to digital-only formats (Primera Hora on September 24 and El Nuevo Día on September 27), citing changing consumer habits and growing online audiences amid a global trend of shrinking ad revenue and rising production costs. Publisher María Luisa Ferré Rangel said the company aims to reach Puerto Ricans 'wherever Puerto Rico is,' on the island or abroad.
The shift will also shut down the El Nuevo Día press, affecting a dozen regional and islandwide newspapers that printed their editions there. GFR Media has not disclosed layoff numbers, but the Association of Puerto Rican Journalists said the company’s unionized workforce fell from nearly 400 in 2015 to fewer than 100 in 2025. The announcement drew strong public reaction from former executives, journalists and readers who called it the end of an era.
Retired journalist Nilsa Pietri warned that digital-only publishing risks eroding journalism quality, noting readers will now need power, signal and a paid subscription to access content. Others invoked historical newspaper figures, framing the change as a cultural rupture for the island.