Proponents of journalism-competition bill still voice hope; others say it's probably dead, prefer tax-credit idea

The Journalism Competition and Preservation Act, which would let news outlets collectively bargain with Big Tech platforms for compensation for news content and set up an arbitration panel to resolve an deadlock, appears dead for this session of Congress, and with the House and Senate divided between the parties next session, it is probably dead, period.

“I think it looks pretty grim for the JCPA,” Report for America President Steven Waldman told the New England Newspaper and Press Association Thursday, the day after the JCPA was pulled from a must-pass defense bill. “I think that  was the best shot. . . . My focus right now is on the payroll tax credit, which I think has a better shot.”

Northeastern University journalism professor Dan Kennedy mentioned that alternative in the Dec. 7 edition of his Media Nation newsletter, writing, “I’m going to guess that that’s the last we’re going to hear about the JCPA because House Republicans oppose it, and time is running out for the Democratic majority to push it through. Maybe this will carve out space for a better bill, the Local Journalism Sustainability Act, which would bolster local news by creating temporary tax credits for subscribers, advertisers and publishers.”

Advocates of the JCPA "remained hopeful that Congress might muster the political will to reintroduce it," Gretchen Peck reports for Editor & Publisher, quoting America’s Newspapers CEO Dean Ridings: "America's Newspapers appreciates the efforts of Senators Amy Klobuchar, John Kennedy and so many others to pass legislation that would enable the family and independently owned newspapers to collectively negotiate for the value of their content. We hope that other members of Congress will reconsider this important legislation that would balance the playing field and compensate our members for the incredible work they do, which is important to virtually every community in the U.S."

HD Media Vice President of News and Executive Editor Lee Wolverton told E&P, “I don’t know what the future of this legislation is, but I do know that the real answer is the one we are pursuing — a remedy in court that will snap Google and Facebook’s anti-competitive stranglehold on digital advertising revenue.” Peck notes, In January 2021, the West Virginia publisher filed an anti-trust lawsuit against Google and Facebook, charging them with monopolizing digital advertising.