It is both an exciting and a challenging time for America’s broadcasters. Like so many businesses in our nation, local radio and TV stations have faced enormous challenges posed by COVID-19 and threats to Americans’ access to quality local journalism. Despite this, broadcasters have demonstrated incredible courage and resilience. Their dedicated journalists risk their lives to cover the monumental stories that impact our communities and nation.
Broadcasters are raising awareness of important health and social issues, such as vaccine education, and providing a lifeline during emergencies to keep their listeners and viewers safe and informed. They are delivering the most trusted news to their communities. And, they are a pillar of American democracy, a free and open press whose resolve to bring truth to light cannot be broken.
When Americans need trusted and reliable information on the COVID-19 pandemic and their communities, broadcasters are there. Local radio and television broadcast stations and their network partners are playing an important role in educating and engaging viewers and listeners about vaccines, prevention and treatment.
Despite facing significant advertising revenue losses, broadcasters are delivering unparalleled and uniquely local news coverage that keeps audiences apprised of critical and timely information in their communities. Broadcasters and other local and ethnic media are also best positioned to serve communities of color, multilingual ethnic minorities and other vulnerable populations with COVID-19 news that is trusted, factual and culturally relevant. Additionally, broadcasters have donated more than hundreds of millions of dollars in free airtime to public service announcements aimed at preventing the spread of COVID-19.
Journalism and a free press are bedrocks of American democracy and for over a century, broadcasters have served those values and the public interest in unique and beneficial ways. Yet, even as free, accessible and reliable content remains in high demand, it is being undermined on multiple fronts.
The revolution in digital technologies and the exponential growth of the internet have fundamentally altered the media and advertising landscape, and local broadcast stations must be available on all platforms and every device to remain relevant to audiences and advertisers in the digital age. Broadcasting still remains free to the public because it relies almost exclusively on advertising revenue to support its operations.
Yet, as the advertising market has become dominated by a few giant online platforms, broadcast stations’ advertising revenues have significantly declined, making local journalism more difficult to support. In addition, the dominance and behavior of these platforms in the advertising marketplace have resulted in the diversion of advertising revenue away from local broadcast stations and the solidification of Big Tech platforms as advertising gatekeepers that do not serve the public. Local journalism is now at risk due to this unchecked competitive position held by a handful of dominant digital players.
As Congress considers the competitive challenges and antitrust concerns raised by digital platforms and their impact on local news and information, it should support laws and policies that recognize and uphold broadcasters’ unique and essential role in a democracy and a free press. That is why Congress must pass the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act. This bill will allow stations to jointly negotiate the terms and conditions for their local content when it is accessed through the large tech platforms. There is simply too much at stake if we don’t confront Big Tech’s online dominance. Act now to tell Congress to preserve local journalism.
Learn more about broadcasters’ unparalleled work and NAB’s mission to support it at the Broadcasters’ Policy Agenda.
