Not This Year

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The Washington legislature considered a bill this session to support local news media. The latter is in steep decline due to a near collapse of the business model that had long supported it: subscriptions and ad revenue.

The bill did not pass but may be back in some form next year. The legislature has, in the past, allocated modest funding for this purpose but as budgets have become tighter, the support has not been renewed. Also, in 2023 the legislature waived business taxes on publishers for 10 years.

A number of Islanders kept up a steady stream of comments to our state legislators in favor of this bill. The bill was a priority of the League of Women Voters of Washington. Both Sen. Lisa Wellman and Rep My-Linh Thai were known to support this measure but it did not come to a vote.

Senate Bill 5400 would have taxed social media platform and search engine ad revenue, returned funds as grants to local news media to hire editors and reporters, and supported journalist fellowships at local news media in every one of the 39 counties in the state. Fellows are selected by the Edward R. Murrow School of Journalism at Washington State University School of Journalism. Fortunately, the journalism chair at the Murrow School has said that Boston-based nonprofit Report for America will step up to fill a $750,000 gap in funding that would have come from the state this year.

Supporters of the legislation noted that big tech platforms use content from news publishers without fairly compensating them for value. They benefit handsomely from the advertising revenue that, in part, is supported by news content while newsroom jobs are drastically cut and local news media are going out of business.

According to national research, the loss of newspapers over the past 20 years has caused “fewer people running for office, fewer people voting, less community engagement, increased political partisanship, and negative outcomes in public health and finance, among other concerns”, as reported by the nonprofit, nonpartisan League of Women Voters of Washington Education Fund study “The Decline of Local News and Its Impact on Democracy", 2022.

Brier Dudley, editor of The Seattle Times Save the Free Press Initiative, reports widely on this topic and efforts to support local news journalism. Subscribers can sign up for remarkable in-depth reporting and analysis here.

Former Sen. Karen Keiser, who continues to champion bills to support local news media, felt that the lengthy debate about the Millionaire's Tax made it impossible to consider some bills. Some may have felt that they did not want to support another tax measure, though the tax was minute in comparison to tech ad revenue. Still others may have not had time to overcome the idea (mistaken) that this would put the government in the news business. Some may have not wanted to add a tax on tech during a session in which tax preferences were cancelled for data centers.

As Washington continues to debate whether and the best way to support local news media, other approaches around the nation include New Mexico, which recently adopted a bill to support local news through tax credits. The law provides up to $15,000 in refundable tax credits per journalist, a newspaper printing tax credit, and $3 million for public broadcasting.

Utah adopted a very interesting bill which, like WA SB 5400, levies a tax on the advertising revenue of social media companies that utilize targeted advertising on Utahans. The Republican-led measure considers it a "sin tax"! Revenue generated from this tax (expected to reach over $20 million annually by 2029) is allocated to a restricted account aimed at improving "civic information programs," alongside teen mental health and child literacy. Funds are also provided to support community news and to counter "information pollution".

Both Illinois and New York adopted in 2024 tax credits to save newsroom jobs. Though the programs are notable, the demand for the funds is great. Tax credits, as opposed to Utah’s or SB 5400's approach of taxing tech platforms, are favored by some who are advocating for support for news media. They are thought to be less likely to spur opposition.

Future columns on the topic of news journalism may include innovative efforts to preserve existing sources of news journalism as well as bold efforts to start new sources. Intriguing approaches are popping up all over Washington and around the nation. Businesses, nonprofits, individuals, and governments are all working on it. The hunger for factual news reporting is unlikely to go away. More likely, it is fueling up for the future.

About the Author:

Carolyn Boatsman is forty-year resident of Mercer Island, a former Planning Commissioner, and former Scout leader. She serves as a Mercer Island Forest Steward. Her career was in environmental public health specializing in the protection of drinking water aquifers. Current issues of great interest include local news journalism, natural food webs based upon native plants, and the climate crisis.