Is Local Media Too Big To Fail, Too?

Many news organizations are struggling to stay afloat, particularly those at the local level. As these outlets reduce staff, or close outright, there's a growing concern…from the press…that so-called “news deserts” will engulf more of the country and eventually become so great as to threaten democracy itself.

Setting aside the substantial self-interest underlying these concerns, what are the preferred means of keeping the deserts at bay and democracy out of the dustbin?

A heaping dose of corporate welfare:

The Rebuild Local News coalition is pushing for a comprehensive list of tax credits to keep afloat local newsrooms, such as a tax refund for local news digital subscribers, payroll tax credits for hiring and retaining local reporters, and a tax credit for small businesses to advertise in local news outlets.

Waldman and his coalition estimate that it would bring in $3.5bn of relief to the local news economy via “philanthropy, businesses, consumers and the government”.

While there is an undeniable need for robust local news, that does not mean local news needs a taxpayer handout to do it. And as for relying on government for carveouts and handouts? Being a state-dependent means the news organization is compromised. And should it seek to operate as an independent entity? Consider the example of a West Virginia public broadcast reporter who was fired owing to political pressure from the governor's office.

And let's also not forget that the nature of how and where people get their news continues to change. A Pew Research report noted that the 18-29 age cohort gets the majority of its news from social media, mainly from sites like TikTok and Snapchat.

The bottom line for local papers, then, is they will continue to lose readers to the immediacy of technology. Does that mean democracy is doomed? Hardly. It means the way people get their news has fundamentally changed. No amount of state aid will change that.

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.

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