Senate committee passes bill giving news organizations more power against Big Tech

Senate committee passes bill giving news organizations more power against Big Tech

The Senate Judiciary Committee voted Thursday to approve legislation allowing news organizations to join together to negotiate with Google, Facebook and other dominant platforms to win more revenue. 

The Journalism Competition and Prevention Act advanced in the committee by a vote of 15 to 7.

The bipartisan bill, led by Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Republican Sen. John Kennedy, must go to the full Senate for approval. 

The legislation will sunset within six years.

"The Senate Judiciary Committee has once again stood up to monopoly tech companies on a bipartisan basis. As the daughter of a newspaperman, I understand firsthand the vital role that a free press plays in strengthening our democracy. But local news is facing an existential crisis, with ad revenues plummeting, newspapers closing and many rural communities becoming ‘news deserts’ without access to local reporting. To preserve strong, independent journalism, we have to make sure news organizations are able to negotiate on a level playing field with the online platforms that have come to dominate news distribution and digital advertising," Klobuchar said in a statement.

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