California View: Poll shows importance of Journalism Competition and Preservation Act
In the coming weeks, a group of bipartisan Senators will advance a long-overdue reform that is designed to restore fairness to America’s most vital – yet endangered – industries: news, publishing and journalism.
Co-sponsored by Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minnesota, and Sen. John Kennedy, R-Louisiana, the legislation known as the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act creates a “safe harbor” for news publishers to negotiate fair terms for use of their content by Big Tech companies on online platforms like Facebook News, Google News and social media generally.
While local papers have struggled to remain economically viable for years, Big Tech monopolies like Alphabet and Meta – through sites like Google News and Facebook News – have dominated the news and publishing industries by expropriating the work of smaller and local operators.
The worst part? Under current U.S. antitrust laws, Big Tech’s market manipulation is completely legal. The bill would change that and help usher in a new era of fairness for journalists and news publishers.
Recent modifications to the bill have increased the chances of its successful passage – including the introduction of a measure to placate union concerns, as well as a measure to ensure that dark money organizations like Russia’s state-controlled television network do not inadvertently benefit. Klobuchar is reportedly working to schedule a bill markup of the JCPA with Senate Judiciary Chair Dick Durbin, D-Illinois.
As lawmakers evaluate the bill’s practical and political merit, members of both parties would be wise to consider the findings of my firm’s recent public opinion polling on the subject, which found broad-based support for the JCPA as well as for general reforms to rein in Big Tech and save local journalism.
Having conducted several polls on the subject within the last couple of months –including nationally in early April – on behalf of the News Media Alliance, it’s clear that reining in Big Tech is an enduring hot-button issue for Americans.
Importantly, Congress passing the bill was supported by a strong majority of Americans nationally (70%). Likewise, approximately two-thirds of respondents said it was important to pass it, and roughly 7 in 10 agreed that: “elected officials who oppose the JCPA are allowing Big Tech companies to continue manipulating the news and publishing industries for their own gain, leaving small and local publishers powerless.”
Notably, those surveyed also indicated that a political candidate’s support for the JCPA could impact their vote in an election. By roughly a 4-1 margin, Americans surveyed in April would be more likely, rather than less likely, to back candidates for Congress who support the bill.
Our poll revealed widespread public concern over Big Tech companies having too much power in the news and publishing industries (79%) and manipulating these industries for their own gain (78%).
The public is also deeply worried about local journalism’s survival, as Americans (83%) broadly believe this is important. Yet, roughly three-quarters of respondents agree that Big Tech’s monopoly over the news and publishing industries poses a direct threat to these small and local operators.
Thus, in addition to backing the JCPA specifically, the public also broadly supports Congress acting in a more general way to curb Big Tech’s undue influence over news and publishing in order to make these industries fairer for small and local publications.
Eight-one percent of those polled agree with a statement to this effect: “Congress needs to rein in Big Tech by passing reforms that would make the publishing industry fairer for smaller media entities and local operators.”
In my experience as a professional pollster who has worked in the industry for more than 40 years, it is rare for an issue or reform to garner this level of consistent and broad-based support with Americans across the country.
The collective American public wants to rein in Big Tech, and elected officials from both parties have an opportunity to deliver on targeted reforms – by advancing the JCPA – which our data indicates would also have a demonstrably positive electoral impact for these members.
These findings present a call-to-action to our leaders who now have a clear mandate from their constituents to rein in Big Tech and save local journalism by passing the JCPA into law.
Douglas Schoen is a longtime Democratic political consultant. Distributed by the Southern California News Group.