By Ethnic Media Services<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(CBM) \u2013 Black news publishers in California are watching lawmakers closely, anticipating that they will include provisions in a pro-journalism bill that would benefit their businesses. On June 2, the California Assembly passed Assembly Bill (AB) 886<\/a> with a vote of 46-6.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The bill would mandate that social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook and Google to pay a \u201cjournalism usage fee\u201d to news organizations for sharing their content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Assemblymember Buffy Hicks (D-Oakland) said she authored the bill with the goal of supporting California\u2019s local news media outlets including ethnic media and small news publishers throughout the state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFree press is in our constitution, and it is at risk right now. That is what this bill is about,\u201d Wicks told the Assembly. \u201cPublishers deserve to be paid a journalism usage fee relative to how much their content is used on these platforms.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n According to the text of the bill, newspaper advertising has decreased by 66% over the past 10 years, and newsroom staff have declined 44%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGiven the important role of ethnic media, it is critical to advance state policy that ensures their publishers are justly compensated for the content they create and distribute,\u201d the bill\u2019s language asserts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n AB 886, also known as the California Journalism Preservation Act, would require outlets receiving funds to use 70% of it on journalists and support staff. The bill was co-sponsored by the California News Publishers Association (CNPA), and the California Labor Federation (CLF).<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhen local newspapers shutter, civic engagement goes down, corruption goes up, and the ability to combat disinformation erodes further,\u201d CNPA wrote in a statement of support for the bill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLike all workers, journalists\u2019 labor produces value. News workers win their fair share of it through collective bargaining with employers, as protected by the National Labor Relations Act. But, if that value is unfairly captured by third-party tech websites instead of the news publishers that employ journalists, these workers cannot bargain for pay that reflects their actual economic productivity. Meanwhile, newsroom jobs keep disappearing,\u201d wrote CFL\u2019s Mitch Steiger in a press release.<\/p>\n\n\n\n AB 886 also references a document written by the African American journalist and abolitionist Samuel Cornish in 1827. It highlighted the need for African Americans to have their own platform to express their grievances, advocate for their rights, and challenge racial inequality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe Wish to Plead Our Own Cause,\u201d Cornish wrote and Wicks references in the bill language.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The bill language goes on to state, \u201cThis call to action spurred the establishment of numerous Black-owned newspapers and publications, solidifying the role of the Black press as a powerful tool for empowerment and social change, and laid the groundwork in our country for other ethnic media to plead their own cause.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Bill has faced opposition from multiple organizations such as the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), the California Chamber of Commerce, CalMatters and Facebook\u2019s parent company Meta.<\/p>\n\n\n\n According to Meta, news accounts for less than 3% of the content appearing on most Facebook users\u2019 feeds. They also state that the media\u2019s struggles were not in direct correlation with the growth of social media platforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIf the Journalism Preservation Act passes, we will be forced to remove news from Facebook and Instagram rather than pay into a slush fund that primarily benefits big, out-of-state media companies under the guise of aiding California publishers,\u201d Meta said in a statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n