Journalism Competition and Preservation Act
This act would allow small and mid-sized news organizations to collectively negotiate use of their content by major online platforms. Continue Reading Journalism Competition and Preservation Act
Passing the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act in the US Senate should be a top priority for members of Congress this year. If the US wants to be considered a leader in the promotion of democracy it must first address its own challenges to freedom of the press.
Reporters without Borders (RWB) cites the increasing power of media monopolies as one reason for the steady decline in the U.S. ranking in press freedom. Our nation’s ranking on the World Press Freedom Index has fallen steadily from 17th in 2002 to 55th in 2024.
In their 2022 World Press Freedom Index report, RWB stated, “While most major media outlets in the United States operate free from government interference, many popular outlets are owned by a small handful of wealthy individuals.”
A free press requires independence and diversity, but a small group of media companies dominate all the major media markets, limiting the ability of smaller independent media outlets to compete. For example, Fox has more than 200 affiliated TV stations throughout the nation. It owns 29 stations and enjoys “duopolies” (owns two stations) in 11 out of the 15 top markets.
iHeart Media – formerly Clear Channel – owns 860 radio stations in 160 markets nationwide. In 2023 the company generated $2.15 billion. Cumulus Media owns 401 radio stations and claims to reach 250 million listeners in 85 markets through the stations it owns, and via 9,800 affiliated stations through Westwood One, the largest audio network in North America.
Audacy was formerly known as Entercom. It owns over 227 radio stations in 46 markets across the US and claims to reach 165 million listeners. The company owns 15 radio stations in the Seattle area alone.
TEGNA owns 64 TV stations in 51 markets. A hedge-fund investment group Standard General announced that it wanted to buy the company for $5.4 billion. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) decided to hold hearings on the issue. Standard General sued the FCC for delaying approval of the purchase. In May 2023 the hedge-fund investors decided not to pursue the planned merger.
Despite this recent development, over the past 2 decades the FCC has failed to protect the public airwaves. The commissioners have allowed corporations to consolidate their ownership of U.S. media.
The commission was accused of trying to suppress some of its own research on the subject of corporate media ownership consolidation. According to research conducted by Fordham University and the Universities of Michigan and Delaware, the result of this FCC policy has been a reduction in local news coverage and less BIPOC and female ownership of media.
The FCC does not regulate online media, but Big Tech companies like Facebook and Google monopolize the marketplace. These tech giants have been using content from newspapers and other news sources without offering fair compensation. It’s another example of how monopolies control U.S. media markets. The loss of revenue has resulted in the demise of many newspapers across the country.
The Journalism Competition and Preservation Act would allow smaller news outlets and individual media owners to join together to negotiate for adequate compensation for the use of their content. Google and Facebook have reaped many benefits from sourcing material from local news organizations. It’s time for this duopoly to share the wealth and pay a premium for that vital content.
Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and John Kennedy (R-LA) reintroduced the JCPA legislation in 2023. Klobuchar said, “To preserve strong, independent journalism, news organizations must be able to negotiate on a level playing field with the online platforms that dominate news distribution and digital advertising.”
This bipartisan bill would help protect small news outlets by prohibiting discrimination by the tech giants against an eligible digital journalism provider based on its size or the views expressed in its content and provide a private right of action for violations of this prohibition.”
The passage of JCPA would help to level the playing field at a time when large tech and mega media companies have completely dominated the media landscape. It would also boost our ranking on the World Press Freedom Index by showing that the U.S. is serious about confronting the dominance of online media monopolies.
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