New California Big Tech Deal Hurts Local Journalism

In a clear display of Big Tech's outsized market power, a last-minute closed door deal between Google and the state of California has succeeded in shelving popular bipartisan state legislation that would have fairly compensated local newsrooms for their valuable journalism. This sets a dangerous precedent that could cripple trusted news outlets, and lets Big Tech off the hook as they continue to siphon advertising dollars away from local broadcast stations and other news publishers while not offering fair compensation for our content.

A study by BIA estimates that broadcasters lose nearly $2 billion annually due to the use of their content by tech platforms like Google and Meta. This imbalance not only jeopardizes the sustainability of local journalism, but also threatens the quality of information available to consumers as tech platforms continue to profit from the hard work of broadcasters without fair compensation.

Rather than right this wrong, California's new deal continues to undercompensate journalists while sidestepping some of the biggest offenders like Meta. It's ironic that while this deal offers AI accelerator funds, it ignores the fact that Big Tech-backed AI platforms continue to ingest and profit from local news content without proper compensation or permission.

As The News Guilds notes, "Not a single organization representing journalists and news workers agreed to this undemocratic and secretive deal with one of the businesses destroying our industry." This is another missed opportunity for meaningful progress and a reminder of Big Tech's continued unchecked dominance.

It also makes abundantly clear that the need for federal action is now more urgent than ever. It is past time for Congress to pass the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act (JCPA), a bipartisan bill that would give broadcasters and other news publishers the power to come together and negotiate fair terms with Big Tech for how their content is used online.

The size of tech platforms like Amazon, Facebook and Google dwarfs local TV and radio stations. These tech giants act as gatekeepers of online content, controlling how consumers access news, and how news publishers are compensated for the use of our content. At the same time, they also siphon away advertising revenue that would otherwise be reinvested into local journalism. The platforms exploit their dominant market position, making it harder for broadcasters to sustain their operations while benefiting from the valuable content created by local stations. 

News is costly to produce, and stations invest significant resources to keep reporters in their local communities. The business practices of the tech giants prevent local stations from recouping their investment in local journalism, as these platforms exert enormous influence over what online content is eligible to be monetized. Big Tech controls the share of revenue they retain and the amount passed on to the content providers, who ironically bear the costs of producing the quality journalism that benefits the platforms.

The bipartisan JCPA will level the playing field, allowing TV and radio stations to continue their vital work in producing trusted, fact-based journalism. With the upcoming elections, we need strong local newsrooms to keep Americans informed. In fact, the Swing State Project found that a majority of Americans trust their local broadcasters more than any other medium for election news.

Local broadcast stations know the communities they report on, they drive on the same roads, take their children to the same parks and cheer on the same local sports teams as their audiences.

From covering city council meetings to the high school football game to the upcoming election, broadcasters provide verified news and information Americans can trust. Local newsrooms need a level playing field to work with Big Tech. Congress needs to pass the JCPA - our democracy depends on it.

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