PIJI appears at regional media hearing
PIJI chief executive Anna Draffin and Chair Allan Fels appeared in front of the House of Representatives Communication and the Arts Standing Committee to address its inquiry into Australia’s regional newspapers.
The committee’s two days of public hearings in Canberra heard from a range of stakeholders, including newswire Australian Community Media, ABC, SBS, AAP, Free TV Australia, Country Press Australia and Community Broadcasting Association of Australia. Also appearing were government agencies Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) and Australian Communication and Media Authority (ACMA).
Ms Draffin told the committee it was important policy decisions on the types and levels of support for public interest journalism were fully informed by core longitudinal data.
Newsroom Mapping
Eight changes were logged during February in the Australian Newsroom Mapping Project, including the additions of the Braidwood Bugle, Blacktown News, Ingham Daily Press and Inner West Review, and the merging of Whitsunday Life and Mackay Life to form the Mackay and Whitsunday Life.
Alice Springs News announced it was ending active research and reporting in February 2022, with archival news material remaining accessible online.
Data from the PIJI’s ANMP report was also discussed in The Walkley Regional Journalism Summit held February 10. A summary of PIJI’s data is available, along with a video of the full session to be released shortly.
You can read the February ANMP report on our website or view the map here.
Sector Roundup
Work across the industry is continuing apace and it’s been yet another busy month across news media.
A review of the News Media and Digital Platforms Mandatory Bargaining Code started on Wednesday, March 2, with the Treasurer releasing the Terms of Reference on February 28. The review will produce a consultation paper in coming weeks.
The Walkley Foundation and Meta announced the release of $5 million in funding for 54 news organisations and independent journalists across Australia. This funding forms part of the Facebook Australian News Fund, which represents a $15 million, three-year investment as support for public interest journalism and digital newsroom projects.
In other news, the Australian Government released its response to the Media Reform Green Paper, twelve months after the paper’s release. The response outlined the Federal Government’s next steps in its media reform agenda, as well as a major funding boost of $4.2 billion for public broadcasters ABC and SBS to enhance the range and quality of their services.
PIJI would like to all our partners, including recent support from Ruffin Falkiner Foundation, Rebecca Gormon & John Sevior, Susan McKinnon Foundation, and Good Wolf that will enable PIJI to undertake the next phase of its in-demand work.
Recent Media Coverage
Australia
- Is there a future for local and regional news? Going digital amid a changing media landscape post-COVID. ABC, February 10
- Media releases written by politicians’ staff are being presented as news stories in regional Australia. ABC, February 17
- A tale of two stories as the Age and the Australian search for truth amid the haze. The Guardian, February 18.
International
- USA
Let’s strengthen local reporting by 50,000 new journalists. Columbia Journalism Review, February 28. - United Kingdom
MPs must show ‘guts’ to save public interest journalism in England and Wales. Journalism.co.uk, February 14. - New Zealand
Reports warns $55m journalism fund risks protecting established players from new entrants. NZ Herald, February 16.
News
- Australia’s News Media Bargaining Code and the global turn towards platform regulation
Diana Bossio, Terry Flew, James Meese, Tama Leaver, Belinda Barnet, Policy & Internet - How journalists internalize news practices and why it matters David Ryfe, Journalism
- The civil norm building role of news journalism in post-civil war settings
Jackie Harrison, Stefanie Pukalius, Journalism - Fact-checking misinformation: eight notes on consensus reality Otavio Vinhas, Marco Bastos, Journalism Studies
- Blurring boundaries between journalists and tiktokers: journalistic role performance on TikTok
Maria-Cruz Negreira-Rey, Jorge Vazquez-Herrero, Xose Lopez-Garcia, Media and Communication