As devastating layoffs and growing news deserts fuel uncertainty about the future of journalism, what can save local media?
At a Friday, February 2 Ethnic Media Services briefing, local news policy advocates and ethnic media publishers discussed on the role of local journalism against the growing news crisis, and compared legislative policies to support local journalism.
Addressing the crisis
“The crisis in local news is accelerating nationwide,” said Steven Waldman, founder and president of Rebuild Local News and co-founder and former president of Report for America.
Advertising to local newspapers declined 82% — a $40 billion drop — since 2000, according to the Pew Research Center.
An annual State of Local News report from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism found that the loss of local newspapers accelerated to two and a half per week in 2023, leaving over 200 counties as “news deserts” and over half of U.S. counties with limited access to reliable local news, with another 228 counties at “high risk” of losing local news.
Although there is a general consensus among local news advocates that “government support should not be the primary support” as this can potentially “undermine independence of the press, we’re seeing that some policies are clearly needed,” said Waldman.
One such policy is heavier government investment of advertising in local journalism.
In New York City, for example, the City Council passed a CUNY proposal that half the advertising money the city spent would benefit community media, which led to a $9.9 million shift of funds for the sector — nearly 84% of the city’s total print and ad budget.
Other such policies include tax credit proposals, said Waldman.
On the state level, this involves tax credit for small businesses that advertise in local news. On the federal level, the Community News and Small Business Support Act (HR-4756), a bill currently in Congress, proposes an employment tax credit of up to $25,000 per head for editorial staff.
The Australian-Canadian model
Another national-level proposal is a bargaining code requiring tech platforms like social media companies to compensate news organizations for use of content.
In Canada, this took the form of the Online News Act (C-18) passed in 2022, while in Australia the News Media Bargaining Code was passed in 2021.
Ryan Adam, vice president of government and public relations for the Toronto Star — Canada’s largest newspaper — said “You see now with the LA Times and Washington Post layoffs, having a benevolent rich owner isn’t enough. And that’s because the business model for news is broken on the advertising side.”
“80% of our own revenue used to come from ads and 20% from subscriptions,” he continued, “but in the last 15 years, with the ability of Google and Meta to use our content to drive advertising, a great deal of that 80% has gone.”
Now, three years into the Australian bill, “tech platforms are holding up their end of some lucrative content deals. Revenue bleeding has stopped, and people there are starting to think of journalism as a growing industry,” said Adam, who advocated for the Canadian bill modelled upon its Australian predecessor.
“A lack of any government-independent news is not built to last, because governments change,” he added. “What is built to last is some of the biggest companies in the world recognizing the value of the content they’re using, through compensating journalists with revenue from ads run by sharing that news. I think it’s the best-case scenario.”
U.S. tech content bills
These initiatives set an international precedent for two similar U.S. tech content bargaining bills: the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act (S-1094), federal legislation which is currently in Congress, and the Journalism Protection Act (AB-886), California legislation which will be heard by the Senate Judiciary Committee in early June.
Brittney Barsotti, general counsel of the California Newspaper Publishers Association, said despite criticisms that tech compensation will simply benefit hedge funds or large national news organizations, “We have around 450 publications throughout California and over 90% are small businesses … The money they’d get is based on how much content is displayed. It’s not a link tax.”
Regardless, she continued, due to the Dormant Commerce Clause and the First Amendment, “We can’t do content-based deals,” e.g. for ethnic media content specifically. However, tweaks like newsroom headcount-based money distribution or guaranteed minimums for small publishers could mitigate compensation concerns for bills like these.
“Some advocate for philanthropy, but we’d need up to $1.75 billion to adequately supply local news nationwide,” Barsotti added. “It won’t solve the crisis, because the crisis is based on major platforms dominating ad space.”
Ethnic media on surviving the crisis
Martha Aszkenazy — owner and publisher of the bilingual and over century-old San Fernando Valley Sun for the past 21 years — said that due to this domination, “since the day that I’ve owned the paper, it’s always been a struggle.”
“I rely primarily on display ads, with 30% of these being public notices,” she continued. “We’re free partly because the community I serve doesn’t have that extra money, but if I’m still generating money for the platforms that share us, I want my fair share.”
“It’s hard for people on those platforms to figure out what’s true or fake news, because it’s only through external media that fake news is addressed,” said Cora Orie, publisher and president of the fully ad-dependent national Filipino publication Asian Journal. “We are the guardians of the truth in our society, and truth will die with our demise.”
Nakia Cooper — president of the Houston Association of Black Journalists, Houston Ethnic Media communications director and publisher of Bayou Beat News — said that while print publications in particular are fighting to survive, “I have a digital outlet with Bayou too; but as a local Black publisher, I’m still a little guy against the big guys. Big advertisers talk about inclusive support and come to local news when they need us, but I haven’t seen that support.”
“They say everyone has a voice, but it’s the age of misinformation — especially on these digital platforms,” she added. “What are we doing to make sure journalists trained to vet misinformation are players in the game?”
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