Free Press

SB 1327 has immense potential to bolster local news at a time when California desperately needs bold action. Since 2004, the state has lost 25 percent of its newspapers, total news circulation has dropped more than 50 percent, and many ethnic media outlets and nonprofit newsrooms have had to scratch and claw for financial survival.

Read more +

There’s a lot to like in this bill, which would incentivize the hiring and retention of journalists and provide support to pay freelancers, a category of workers that smaller and ethnic media publications rely on. It would also put the California Local News Fellowship program, which uses public funds to strengthen news in underserved areas, on a path toward long-term sustainability. There is strong logic in imposing a fee on giant tech platforms to generate financial support for the production of local journalism and civic information.

There is more work to do to ensure that nonprofits, ethnic media outlets and community publishers are prioritized over media giants, given that these entities are most adept at addressing community-information needs. And even more needs to be done to address the sustainable production of public-interest journalism, and to ensure a thriving future for local news. Even as we encourage you to advance this bill, it’s essential that the legislature continue to refine this bill so that its benefits are targeted to those who need them most.