This article first appeared in the ‘TinyLetter’ sent out by journalist Corey Hutchins.
Yesterday, Colorado’s Democratic US senator, Michael Bennet, introduced legislation that, if passed, would examine ways in which the federal government might try to help fix our country’s bottomed-out local news business model.
By now, readers of this newsletter should not need a disaster reel refresher about why some might believe such help is necessary.
The Future of Local News Commission Act would create a federal panel of 13 folks who have “relevant experience — in print, digital, and broadcast news, as well as the business, civil society, and research communities — from diverse regions of the country,” according to a summary provided by Bennet’s office. To serve on the panel, the lawmakers are looking for, among others, a “digital-native or digital-first news editor,” a “nonprofit news outlet journalist or editor,” and a local county editor or journalist who works for an outlet “with circulation or readership of not more than 75,000.”
So what would these commission members do? Among other duties, the bill says they would:
“Examine the state of local news and the ability of local news to sustain democracy by meeting the critical information needs of the people of the United States.”
“Examine potential new mechanisms for public funding for the production of local news to meet the critical information needs of the people of the United States and address systemic inequities in media coverage and representation throughout the country.”
“Provide recommendations on mechanisms that the Federal Government can create and effectively implement to support production of professional, independent, and high-quality local news to meet the needs of the public.”
Recommendations, “in addition to any other proposals deemed appropriate, may explore the possible creation of a new national endowment for local journalism, or the reform and expansion of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting or another appropriate institution, to make public funds a part of a multi-faceted approach to sustaining local news.”
More than a dozen top journalism advocacy groups signed on in support of the legislation before news of it became widely public, including PEN America and the Society of Professional Journalists. Locally, the Colorado Media Project signed on in support, according to Bennet’s office.
Reading the bill is to take a ride across the rubble of our nation’s local news landscape. Its authors note how rural areas have been hit particularly hard, and they explain the damage that disappearing local news does to democracy while citing various studies this newsletter has chronicled over the years. PEN’s Losing the News report gets a mention, as does the important work of Penny Abernathy at the University of North Carolina.
Early in the text of the bill, its authors quote Thomas Jefferson saying, “were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.’’ (The legislation doesn’t mention some perhaps lesser-known quotes of his that are more in line with what we’ve been hearing from our current president. Jefferson had a complicated relationship with the newspapers of his time.)
Lead sponsors of the bill are Bennet of Colorado, and Democratic U.S. Sens. Brian Schatz of Hawaii and Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota.
“Local news is foundational to our democracy, but a convergence of forces — from consolidation to social media to COVID-19 — has pushed news rooms across America to the brink,” Bennet said in a statement. He added that he worries deeply about “an America without local reporters on the beat to hold officials accountable” and who engage citizens in the events shaping their communities. “My hope,” he said, “is that this commission will — in a nonpartisan, sober, and thoughtful manner — come forward with recommendations to help reinvigorate local journalism across the country while preserving the independence vital to a free and robust press.”
Bennet, who ran for president in the Democratic primary this cycle, has some high-level familial and career connections to people in the news business. His father ran NPR in the 1980s, and his brother James was editor of The Atlantic magazine and then ran the editorial page of The New York Times where he recently tumbled out of power. Michael Bennet also worked as managing director for the private equity division of conservative Denver billionaire Phil Anschutz, who owns Clarity Media. That company’s media properties include The Gazette in Colorado Springs, Colorado Politics, The Washington Examiner magazine, and the newly launched Denver Gazette.
In the past year, Colorado has become a place where public conversations about the efficacy of government support for the local news industry have been happening more than elsewhere. Despite Colorado Democratic Gov. Jared Polis throwing cold water on the idea of increased state-government support, this year, his office’s economic development agency offered for the first time ever an Advanced Industries Accelerator Grant to a local news publisher. Meanwhile, as their revenues cratered amid the pandemic, local news outlets large and small across Colorado applied for and received federal relief dollars through programs of the Small Business Administration.
While there are plenty of examples throughout U.S. history of government helping subsidize journalism in various ways, journalists are expected to remain independent of government and act as a check on official power. It is not uncommon to hear people in the journalism industry push back against calls for more public-sector support out of concern of undue influence.
Here’s a line giving voice to that in the new federal bill:
According to the Native American Journalists Association, Tribal news outlets are often dependent on Tribal governments for funding, but most Tribal news outlets lack the policy structure necessary to fully protect journalistic independence. As a result, freedoms of speech and press among Tribal nations are inconsistent, as Tribal media journalists report experiencing punitive budgetary restrictions, censorship, required prior approval of content, and workplace harassment in pursuit of Tribal reporting.
One of the tasks of this new commission, should it come into existence, would be to “consider issues of transparency and other guardrails, such as editorial independence from government actors and a distinct, independent legal and financial structure for the funding institution, which must be addressed if public funding is viewed in principle as one path forward to support production of local news.”