Leveling the playing field

But the Herald is a rare surviving species in an ecosystem where so many others have died. Throughout the country, it is estimated that about 2,500 local newspapers have shuttered since 2004, with 360 of them closing since just before the pandemic. 

Simply put, local newspapers have Big Tech to thank for this situation. According to the News Media Alliance (NMA), newspapers throughout the country have reported a 58 percent decline in revenue since 2005, when newsrooms began shifting their content from print to the internet. 

Meanwhile, companies like Google and Meta, the parent company of Facebook, have benefitted from that online transition, capturing up to 70 percent of digital advertising revenue generated when viewers use their platforms to read articles published by local newspapers. 

This is a massively overlooked issue that has eaten away at local journalism since the dawn of the internet and social media, but new legislation currently sitting with Congress seeks to level the playing field. 

The Herald supports the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act (JCPA), a bipartisan reform that would grant news publishers an “antitrust exemption” to collectively negotiate with Big Tech companies regarding the distribution of their content online and on social media. 

An initial version of the JCPA was introduced to Congress last year. After a series of changes, the proposal, which now has bipartisan support, came before Congress again last week and is likely to pass. 

Journalists throughout the country objected to the JCPA in 2021, claiming it would create deeper ties between Big Tech companies and larger publishers while excluding smaller ones, but the latest version of the proposal includes language to address those concerns. 

If passed, the JCPA would partially restore local autonomy over journalism. Before the internet and social media, newspapers dealt directly with their communities. A successful hometown paper required a few reporters, devoted subscribers and a strong local business community willing to advertise. 

Somewhere along the line, Big Tech muddled this system by dipping its hand into local media markets and not giving anything back. 

Despite this destructive dynamic, these companies are too vital to be cut out of the equation altogether, and newspapers like the Herald will continue using their platforms to meet readers where they are. But the JCPA would kick off a vital negotiation process, granting newsrooms throughout the country more autonomy over their work. 

According to a poll conducted by NMA, a vast majority of Coloradoans are in support of the JCPA. Additionally, 86 percent of those surveyed in the state said that the survival of local journalism is important. Let’s convey this sentiment to our representatives by voicing support for the JCPA. 

Every great community should have a newspaper to chronicle its triumphs and tribulations and to keep its elected officials and economic leaders in check. Without the negative influence of Big Tech, newspapers like the Herald can continue this practice for decades to come. 

Patrick Bilow

Herald Editor