Federal support promised for regional news

The Coalition has pledged $10 million in grants for regional newspapers, a promise quickly matched by Labor, as regional papers once again come under financial strain.

In 2020, the Public Interest News Gathering (PING) Program offered regional television, newspaper, and radio businesses providing public interest journalism a $50 million lifeline, as they battled through the COVID-19 pandemic.

One fifth of that amount was handed to Australian Community Media (ACM) to reopen publications they had closed as covid hit.

This year another crisis looms, as Norske Skog – the only provider of newsprint and magazine-grade paper in Australia – announced a price increase that could see newsprint costs soar by 80 per cent in July.

On 9 May, Minister for Communications Paul Fletcher and Minister for Regionalisation, Regional Communications and Regional Education Bridget McKenzie issued a media release pledging a new $10 million round of PING funding.

“Regional newspapers provide a vitally important role in bringing regional communities together and keeping them informed of local news and events,” Minister Fletcher said.

“Our Government has been there to support regional media over the past three years. The Public Interest News Gathering program is a tried and tested model that supported regional newspapers and broadcasters during the pandemic.

“I have met with major regional publishers on the issues they are facing and the support they require. We will move urgently to deliver this new round following the election, working closely with the sector, with payments expected to be made from 1 July when newsprint prices are due to increase.”

Minister McKenzie added that locally printed newspapers are “so important for our regional communities because they tell local stories that will never be covered by the bigger publishers,”

Up to $2 million will also be provided for an investment ready analysis, to replace Norske Skog’s coal-fired boiler at its Boyer Mill, to “help secure the Boyer Mill’s long-term future as Australia’s only producer of publication grade paper”.

Country Press Australia (CPA), which represents over 250 regional news outlets across the country, issued a call for a bipartisan support, to prevent newspaper closures and job losses.

That call was answered when Labor announced a $15 million package on 13 May, including “$10 million for eligible regional newspaper publishers” and “$5 million for eligible local newspaper publishers, including independent suburban, First Nations and multicultural newspaper publishers”.

But the funding announcement didn’t come without a barb for the Coalition.

“If Scott Morrison had done his job properly by supporting public interest journalism with measures that were recommended well before COVID-19 and the war in Ukraine, the sector would have been on a more sustainable footing to absorb this price increase,” a media release from Shadow Minister for Communications, Michelle Rowland, read.

To read the full story – Simply click on the following link

 https://issuu.com/themooraboolnews/docs/mn_2022-05-24/10

in the 24 May 2022 edition
OR
pick up a paper around your town.