Depending on the specifics of the publication, we can broadly say that print media used to get more revenue from advertising than people actually buying the physical media.

You could Google it and read about the decline but Wikipedia is a place to start:

> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decline_of_newspapers?wprov=sf...

Newspapers used to give copies of their daily paper away in bulk to distribution hubs so as to boost circulation. In fact, they still do.

You can often pick up a paper for free when boarding a flight.