I would submit news qua news was never historically a good "business" on its own but only ever worked as bundled with something else (sports score, tv listings, classified ads, as a lead in to another TV show, or, today, games/NYTimes)
thus, perhaps, the free market history worked as that bundle and as the NYT does today
and, also perhaps, if more followed that model, the free market would again prevail
{no channel}