On October 19, the News/Media Alliance sent a letter together with Digital Content Next and the European Publishers Council to the G7 member states and the European Union regarding the Group’s efforts to develop global AI principles and a voluntary code of conduct under the so-called Hiroshima AI Process. The letter expressed support for the process and encouraged the member states to include strong transparency obligations and copyright protections in the G7 framework. The letter was accompanied by the Global AI Principles signed by the Alliance and over two dozen other content and media organizations in September, covering issues related to intellectual property, transparency, accountability, quality and integrity, fairness, safety, design, and sustainable development. The G7 are expected to finalize the framework in the coming weeks. The European Commission recently published a draft version of the principles, including a reference to copyrights and transparency measures.

The post News/Media Alliance Commends G7’s Hiroshima AI Process, Calls for Strong Copyright Protections appeared first on News/Media Alliance.

On October 5th, the Alliance joined an application, submitted to the DC Circuit Court, requesting audiovisual access to the United States v. Donald J. Trump trial related to the January 6th events, currently scheduled for March 2024. The Alliance also joined a media coalition letter, led by Ballard Spahr, to the Judicial Conference of the Administrative Office of the United State Courts urging a change to Rule 53 to allow audiovisual access to the trial and other criminal proceedings. The application and letter outline how this criminal trial against a former President is historic and unprecedented, and the public and the media have a right to access the trial. Audiovisual coverage is necessary to provide accurate, timely, and meaningful access to the media and the public, and the per se ban on audiovisual access is unconstitutional. To only allow the few members of the press and public who can get a seat in the courtroom to observe the trial does not satisfy the First Amendment. The Alliance will continue to support efforts to allow greater access for journalists and the public to observe trials, especially those with historic significance.

The post The Alliance Joins Media Coalition Urging Court to Allow Cameras at Trump’s Election Interference Trial appeared first on News/Media Alliance.

“As I boarded an Amtrak train back home from Washington, D.C. last Thursday morning, leaving a city bracing for a potential (ultimately averted) government shutdown amid a debate checkered with misinformation, the capitol’s dysfunction and discord provided an appropriate backdrop to the urgent mission that had brought me there. The News/Media Alliance, an industry advocate, organized last week’s D.C. trip to push for the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act (JCPA), a vital bill that needs to pass.” Read more.

The post My Trip to Capitol Hill, and the Desperate Need to Save Newspapers appeared first on News/Media Alliance.

Additional Resources:

• During the event, the Center for Journalism and Liberty at Open Markets announced the publication of its comprehensive report, “Democracy, Journalism, and Monopoly: How to Fund Independent News Media in the 21st Century.” A tremendous effort from Open Markets and CJL journalists and scholars, this new report – the most comprehensive available today – details how, through a broad & integrated program of reform that restores traditional American principles of competition policy, we can restructure media & communications markets to sustain them in the 21st Century.
• The Center for Journalism and Liberty also launched this week a Technology & Media Fair Compensation Frameworks tracker, which includes information about legislation around the world, plus several sets of policy primers and analyses.

The post ‘Protecting News to Preserve Democracy’ by Center for Journalism & Liberty at Open Markets Institute appeared first on News/Media Alliance.

9/28/23: Senator Chuck Grassley/@ChuckGrassley – “Met w Ronald Slechta with The News (Kalona). We talked about the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act + postage price increases.” See post.

9/28/23: Linda Shapley/@LindaShapley –  “This week, I joined journalism advocates, lawmakers, and @newsalliance members from around the country in Washington in support of local journalism. #SaveLocalNews I visited with my @ColoradoPress colleagues … …”  See post.

9/28/23: S.D. Newspaper Association /@SD_Newspapers, 9/28/23 – “Great day on Capitol Hill with colleagues lobbying for local journalism on behalf of all SD newspapers. Thank you to our congressional delegation for their support of quality, local journalism and what it means for our communities and our democracy. @newsalliance #SaveLocalNews”  See post.

• S.D. Newspaper Association /@SD_Newspapers-  Thanks to @RepDustyJohnson for robust discussion about need to protect & support local journalism. David Bordewyk of SDNA, Rep. Johnson, Letti Lister of Black Hills Pioneer, Bill Masterson of Lee Enterprises & Jeremy Waltner of Freeman Courier. @newsalliance #SaveLocalNews See post.
• S.D. Newspaper Association /@SD_Newspapers-  This week, @bhpioneer’s Letti Lister, @freemancourier’s @jeremywaltner and I joined other jounalism advocates and @newsalliance members in D.C. to support local journalism and the http://jcpabill.com Thank you to @SenatorRounds for an excellent meeting and discussion. See post.

9/29/23: Brian Martin/ @briankmartin “Thanks to @SenJohnBarrasso and @SenLummis for taking time this week to meet with #Wyoming journalists about bills pending in Congress that would benefit local businesses and community news organizations. We appreciate your support!” #SaveLocalNews See post.

9/29/23: Tim Kennedy/@tkkennedytim “Our message this week: #SaveLocalNews -Long past due to pass the JCPA. AI developers need to respect copyrights. They must be required to compensate news organizations for harvesting our content.” See post.

The post JCPA Social Posts: 9/26 – 10/2 appeared first on News/Media Alliance.

“Peekskill Herald Publisher Regina Clarkin was in Washington, D.C. earlier this week to meet with key Senators and Congressional representatives to advocate for bills and ideas to help save local journalism. Clarkin joined local publisher Adam Stone of Examiner Media along with Emily Sachar and Walter Mullin of The Daily Catch in Red Hook, NY as part of a delegation of some 80 newspaper publishers from across the country. The publishers were invited to Washington by the News Media Alliance, a trade association representing 2,000 newspapers whose members include the largest publishing companies, both newspapers and magazines, in the country.”  Read more.

The post Newspaper Publishers Lobby Congress for Passage of Bill to Protect Local Journalism appeared first on News/Media Alliance.

“Washington Post Live anchor and co-author of The Early 202 Leigh Ann Caldwell speaks with Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.) about their bipartisan push for the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act and the role of the free press in a democracy. Conversation recorded on Thursday, September 28, 2023.” Watch now.

The post Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Rep. Ken Buck on Bipartisan Efforts to Protect Journalism appeared first on News/Media Alliance.

On September 7th, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed into law S.2802/A.4393, to provide anti-SLAPP protections against lawsuits known as SLAPPs (short for strategic lawsuits against public participation) designed to chill free speech. New Jersey becomes the 33rd state to adopt such a statute, which will allow courts in New Jersey to dismiss meritless lawsuits designed to silence criticism or speech on issues of public interest.

The New Jersey law is based on the Uniform Public Expression Protection Act (UPEPA), a model statute that has been adopted by four states and provides some of the strongest protections against meritless claims. These protections are vital to ensuring that journalists can freely report on matters important to the public and perform their function as unofficial watchdogs of government action. Anti-SLAPP laws also protect the general public from being intimated into silence when criticizing public officials or other powerful figures.

The post New Jersey Becomes 33rd State to Enact an Anti-SLAPP Law appeared first on News/Media Alliance.

On August 7th, the Alliance joined a brief in Las Vegas Review-Journal v. State of Nevada, filed in the Supreme Court of Nevada, in support of the Journal’s efforts to shield the confidential materials on slain journalist Jeff German’s devices from law enforcement. After Mr. German was stabbed to death outside his home in September 2022, police seized his cellphone, laptops, and a hard drive. The Journal sought a protective order preventing the district attorney and public defender from reviewing the contents of the devices, which would threaten the confidentiality of Mr. German’s sources, some of whom may be employed by law enforcement. The District Court adopted a search protocol that would allow designated law enforcement officials to review the contents of the devices. The brief, filed by RCFP, argues that the District Court’s order should be vacated as it violates Nevada’s shield law which protects a journalist’s confidential newsgathering materials. The Alliance strongly supports the protection of reporter-source confidentiality which is especially important for investigative journalism. Read more.

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Danielle Coffey

Arlington, VA – The News/Media Alliance, a nonprofit trade association representing approximately 2,000 print and digital news and magazine media companies in the United States and Canada, today announced it has selected Danielle Coffey as its new President & Chief Executive Officer. Coffey, who currently serves as the Alliance’s Executive Vice President and General Counsel, will begin in her new role on June 1, 2023.

Since joining the Alliance in 2015, Coffey has led the organization’s advocacy and strategy initiatives with a focus on the digital future for news, including spearheading the introduction of key legislation and advocating for a more favorable regulatory environment. Namely, she has led the effort on advancing legislation that would require Big Tech platforms to fairly compensate news publishers for use of their content.

Prior to her role at the News/Media Alliance, Coffey was Vice President and General Counsel for the Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA), where she led advocacy efforts on issues that affected the internet ecosystem, broadband deployment, content regulation and international trade. She was responsible for informing and educating government representatives about member companies’ technologies and advocated for policies that facilitate innovation.

Coffey said, “It will be an honor to lead this organization and this industry towards a strong and thriving future. I see tremendous opportunity for our expanded membership that now includes news publishers, magazines, and digital publications.  Our contributions to enriching society and democracy are limitless. I am deeply grateful to the Board of Directors for entrusting me to take on this role, and look forward to working with them, the Alliance team, and our affiliate organization the American Press Institute (API), to achieve many great things together.”

“Danielle’s passion for the news industry, and for local journalism in particular, coupled with her policy expertise have proven an enormous advantage for the News/Media Alliance’s advocacy efforts on behalf of our member organizations,” said Maribel Perez Wadsworth, News/Media Alliance board chair. “Additionally, Danielle’s deep knowledge of our members and industry will provide strong momentum around critical priorities, including a laser focus on passage of the Journalism Competition & Preservation Act.”

Coffey is a graduate of San Diego State University. She earned her JD from the Catholic University Law School, with a specialization in Communications Law. She serves on the board of directors of the National Press Club Journalism Institute (NPCJI).

Over the last several years, the News/Media Alliance has led critical advocacy efforts, research, communications and events on behalf of publishers of high-quality journalism, which is critical to a strong and informed society in which government officials are held to account. In addition to the Journalism Competition & Preservation Act (JCPA), the Alliance produces integral industry and audience research that helps news and magazine publishers identify and implement novel approaches to help grow revenue and subscriptions, including the recently released Magazine Media Factbook (previously a product of MPA – the Association of Magazine Publishers, which merged with the News Media Alliance last July) and research on news consumption preferences of Gen Z. In addition, the Alliance has developed multimedia resources for news and magazine publishers, including its News Take podcast, and works with various industry partners to provide tools and resources to help publishers navigate important public policy issues, including postal rates and First Amendment/journalist protection, copyright, privacy, and ad tech, among other issues.

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Media Contact:
Lindsey Loving
Director, Communications
lindsey@newsmediaalliance.org

The News/Media Alliance is a nonprofit organization representing more than 2,000 news and magazine media organizations and their multiplatform businesses in the United States and globally. Alliance members include print and digital publishers of original journalism. Headquartered just outside Washington, D.C., the association focuses on ensuring the future of journalism through communication, research, advocacy, and innovation. Information about the News/Media Alliance can be found at www.newsmediaalliance.org.

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