Keeping journalism alive

Three things cannot seem to work well together – billionaires, media outlets and free press (all of which we touch in this newsletter). And yet, until a decade ago, billionaires buying or investing in media companies was a sign of hope and optimism for the growth of the news media industry. Though for now billionaires’ money, in most parts of the world, is infusing life into many media companies, it appears that no category of owner/funder is able to salvage a media business in an industry that is melting down.

Take Meta for instance, who announced recently that Facebook will stop paying Australian news publishers for content that appears on their platform, setting up a fresh battle with Canberra which had led the world with a law that forces Internet giants to strike licensing deals. Monica’s piece today focuses on the unwelcomed announcement, and in the absence of tens of millions of dollars for Australian news media, she asks: where to now?

All hope is not lost, not yet. Australian news media is now clinging to hope through the Department of Communications’ proposed News Media Assistance Program. The CMT lodged its submission to the consultation last week. Derek discusses some of the points we made around the definition and scope of public interest journalism.

And while Australian news media are processing the Meta news, New Zealand is confronted with a media crisis of its own. It’s almost depressing going through the list of recent media closures and cuts. Hal Crawford explains why it’s happening and what lessons these hold for Australian broadcast media.   

We know that several new options have emerged in recent years for both news consumers and producers, many of whom explicitly present themselves as independent journalists. If the traditional editorial and business models of news are starting to crumble globally – like it or not – it may be that we are witnessing the rise of the Voldemort of the Western news media ecosystem: the alternative media. I raise this question and concern in my piece for this edition.

Read it in full here.

Ayesha Jehangir, CMT Postdoctoral Fellow