Paper As a filler

When I did some joint compound patch up work to plug up some holes in
the drywall I quickly realized that it may not be smart to do so? I used
newspaper to plug up most of the hole and then filled the rest with
joint compound.

<...snipped...>

What are the downsides to this, if any?

If anyone applies pressure to that spot, it's probably going to fall apart.

The OP may have been talking about a fairly small
hole, half inch or less. I have done the same thing
myself on occasion, filling a hole left after removing
a toggle bolt or drywall screw anchor. Wad up a
little bit of newspaper, jam it in the hole tightly,
makes a nice backing for the drywall mud.

Of course, anything much bigger calls for more
conventional repair methods.

I'm at a loss to understand why you wouldn't have either grabbed a book from

<...snipped...>

He most likely already had the newspaper on hand.

the library, or simply gone to web-search and searched for "how to patch holes
in drywall".

FIRE
NESTING MATERIAL FOR MICE