[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 596 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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117th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 596

   Designating April 2022 as ``Preserving and Protecting Local News 
 Month'' and recognizing the importance and significance of local news.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 27, 2022

 Mr. Schatz (for himself, Mr. Booker, Mr. Blumenthal, Ms. Baldwin, Mr. 
 Wyden, Mr. Padilla, Mr. Markey, Ms. Klobuchar, Mr. Brown, Mr. Casey, 
and Mrs. Murray) submitted the following resolution; which was referred 
                   to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
   Designating April 2022 as ``Preserving and Protecting Local News 
 Month'' and recognizing the importance and significance of local news.

Whereas the United States was founded on the principle of freedom of the press 
        enshrined in the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United 
        States, which declares that ``Congress shall make no law . . . abridging 
        the freedom of speech, or of the press . . .'';
Whereas an informed citizenry depends on accurate and unbiased news reporting to 
        inform the judgment of the people;
Whereas a robust, diverse, and sustainable local news presence leads to civic 
        engagement and the buttressing of democratic norms and practices;
Whereas local news serves as a necessary resource during the COVID-19 pandemic 
        to provide communities with public health information and to inform 
        communities about available services and support from Federal, State, 
        local, Tribal, and territorial governments;
Whereas published guidance from the Department of Homeland Security deemed 
        journalists as essential critical infrastructure workers during the 
        COVID-19 pandemic;
Whereas the absence of local news outlets and investigative reporting allows 
        local government corruption and corporate malfeasance to go unchecked;
Whereas local journalists help combat disinformation by using their community 
        knowledge and connections to debunk fraudulent or misleading content;
Whereas local cable franchises routinely provide for public educational and 
        government access channels on their systems, and those channels--

    (1) offer vital local civic programming that informs communities;

    (2) provide news and information not often available on other local 
broadcast channels or cable;

    (3) supplement local journalism; and

    (4) at times, are the only source for local news;

Whereas the people of the United States trust local news sources by a 2-to-1 
        margin;
Whereas, according to recent research--

    (1) the United States has lost more than 2,100 local print outlets 
since 2004;

    (2) more than 200 counties in the United States have no newspaper at 
all, creating a news shortage for the 3,200,000 residents of those 
counties;

    (3) of the remaining counties in the United States, more than \1/2\, or 
1,528, have only 1 newspaper to cover populations ranging from under 1,000 
to more than 1,000,000 residents;

    (4) more than \1/2\ of all United States newspapers have changed owners 
in the past decade, and, in 2018, only 25 companies owned \2/3\ of all 
daily newspapers;

    (5) of the surviving 6,700 newspapers in the United States, at least 
1,000 qualify as ``ghost newspapers'', or newspapers with reporting and 
photography staffs that are so significantly reduced that they can no 
longer provide much of the breaking news or public service journalism that 
once informed readers about vital issues in their communities; and

    (6) rural counties are among the counties most deeply impacted by the 
loss of local reporting, as more than 500 of the 2,100 newspapers that have 
closed or merged since 2004 are in rural counties;

Whereas, while overall employment in newspaper, television, radio, and digital 
        newsrooms dropped by roughly 26 percent, or 30,000 jobs, between 2008 
        and 2020, the plunge in newspaper newsrooms alone was much worse at 57 
        percent, or 40,000 jobs, in that same time period;
Whereas the number of news employees in the radio broadcasting industry dropped 
        by 22 percent between 2004 and 2020;
Whereas beat reporting, meaning the day-to-day coverage of a particular field 
        that allows a journalist to develop expertise and cultivate sources, has 
        ceased to be a viable career for would-be journalists due to the 
        decimation of newsroom budgets;
Whereas requests submitted under section 552 of title 5, United States Code 
        (commonly referred to as ``Freedom of Information Act requests''), by 
        local newspapers to local, State, and Federal agencies fell by nearly 50 
        percent between 2005 and 2010, demonstrating a significant drop in the 
        extent to which local reporters request government records;
Whereas newspapers alone lost more than $35,000,000,000 in advertising revenue 
        between 2004 and 2018;
Whereas, in the second quarter of 2020, advertising revenue fell by a median of 
        24 percent for local television companies;
Whereas the revenue of all-news radio stations dropped by 24 percent in 2020;
Whereas there remains a significant gender disparity in newsroom employment, 
        with women comprising approximately \1/3\ of staff who are 30 years of 
        age or older;
Whereas women who are local television news anchors and reporters, especially 
        women of color, are often subject to harassment and stalking;
Whereas, across the United States, there are more than 200 newspapers published 
        by and for Black readers, and, in recent years, many of those newspapers 
        have seen--

    (1) significant losses in advertising revenue as small businesses in 
their communities were forced to close; and

    (2) circulation declines due to the closures of businesses in their 
communities;

Whereas the number of Black journalists working at daily newspapers dropped by 
        40 percent between 1997 and 2014, more than for any other demographic 
        group;
Whereas the number of print media sources published by and for American Indian 
        readers has shrunk dramatically in recent years, from 700 media outlets 
        in 1998 to only 200 in 2018;
Whereas Tribally owned news outlets are often dependent on Tribal governments 
        for funding, but most of those outlets lack the policy structure 
        necessary to fully protect journalistic independence;
Whereas a 2018 survey by the Native American Journalists Association found that 
        83 percent of respondents believed that Native press coverage of Tribal 
        government affairs was sometimes, frequently, or always censored;
Whereas there are more than 550 Latino news media outlets in the United States, 
        which rely primarily on a declining advertising revenue base;
Whereas the lack of local news impacts communities that speak languages other 
        than English, which are often excluded from national media coverage;
Whereas more than 100 local newsrooms have closed during the COVID-19 pandemic;
Whereas 8 percent of surveyed local radio stations reported the COVID-19 
        pandemic ended their local news programs entirely;
Whereas 30 percent of local television news stations reported budget cuts and 
        staff reductions because of the COVID-19 pandemic;
Whereas PEN America proposed ``a major reimagining of the local news space'' in 
        its 2019 call-to-action report, ``Losing the News: The Decimation of 
        Local Journalism and the Search for Solutions'', and called on society 
        and the Federal Government to urgently address the alarming demise of 
        local journalism; and
Whereas, half a century ago, Congress perceived that the commercial television 
        industry would not independently provide the educational and public 
        interest broadcasting that was appropriate and necessary for the 
        country, and, informed by an independent report prepared by the Carnegie 
        Commission on Educational Television, created the Corporation for Public 
        Broadcasting, which has since ensured that radio and television include 
        public interest educational and reporting programs using annually 
        appropriated funds: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) designates April 2022 as ``Preserving and Protecting 
        Local News Month'';
            (2) affirms that local news serves an essential function in 
        the democracy of the United States;
            (3) recognizes local news as a public good; and
            (4) acknowledges the valuable contributions of local 
        journalism towards the maintenance of healthy and vibrant 
        communities.
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