Since the physical $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill was approved and signed into law today; the Biden administration is now focused upon working on the $1.85 trillion social spending bill.
According to an article in the Los Angeles Times; This includes a provision that if passed, would provide for the first time that the federal government has offered targeted financial support in response to the decline of local news which has been widely affected in recent years.
If President Biden can pass the Child Tax Credits and possibly make them permanent, then why can’t he do the same with tax credits for local journalists and news outlets? It’s a controversial idea and some GOP leaders call it a ‘scam’ or a ‘bribe.’
The assistance would come in the form of a payroll tax credit for media outlets that employ eligible local journalists. The measure would allow newspapers, digital news outlets, radio, and television stations to claim a tax credit of $25,000 for the first year and $15,000 for the next four years for up to 1,500 journalists.
The move is in response to a growing trend of eliminating newsroom jobs, leaving communities and the journalism industry evaporating in the past 15 years. The research was conducted by the University of North Carolina that 1,800 communities have no local newspapers or resources.
The credit would cost $1.67 billion over the next five years. Some Republicans in Congress have frowned upon it and one GOP Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana called it a ‘scam’ in a recent tweet stating, “Make no mistake—this Biden and Dems in Congress helping pay the reporters’ salaries who cover for them.”
🚨🚨 Dems’ radical spending bill exposed:
Tax credits for journalists.
Make no mistake—this is Biden and Dems in Congress helping pay the reporters’ salaries who cover for them.
Experts say it'll cost American taxpayers $1.67 BILLION over 10 years.
What a scam. pic.twitter.com/DFvpAUwQ3P
— Steve Scalise (@SteveScalise) November 5, 2021
Leading journalists clash with the argument that the measure is awkward receiving financial assistance from the federal government that they cover as an independent entity. Other journalists agree with the idea that it’s worth exploring.
Government financial support for the media direct or indirect; like Universal Basic Income (UBI) is not a new idea. It was initiated in the early days when Congress subsidized periodicals’ postal rates. During the early days of the pandemic, small business loans provided millions of aid to various businesses.