Anne Webster (Mallee, National Party) | Link to this | Hansard source

On behalf of the Standing Committee on Communications and the Arts I present the report entitled The future of regional newspapers in a digital world: inquiry into Australia's regional newspapers, together with the minutes of the proceedings.

Report made a parliamentary paper in accordance with standing order 39(e).

by leave—On behalf of the Standing Committee on Communications and the Arts it gives me great pleasure to present the committee's report on the inquiry into Australia's regional newspapers. Australia's regional newspapers are vital for regional and remote areas. Regional newspapers provide the stories of people who have excelled in sport, school or business and highlight important community based issues such as council decisions, court matters, public health issues and local weather events. For more than a decade, however, regional newspapers have been challenged by loss of revenue, loss of talent and rising costs that have forced many to permanently close their doors. As these newspapers close, readers are pushed towards social media for their news, which increases exposure to misinformation and creates a disconnect in Australia's communities.

The issues underpinning the ongoing viability of Australia's regional newspapers are complex and warrant additional consideration outside of what the committee was able to accomplish during its brief inquiry. The committee has therefore recommended a comprehensive review to address these complex issues and consider what is needed for public interest journalism to continue to flourish in Australia. However, there are also measures that can be implemented immediately to help support Australia's regional newspapers, and the committee has identified three key areas that need to be addressed.

First, the committee recognises that there is a significant amount of work being undertaken to understand long-term trends in the way that Australia accesses news; however, no single organisation has responsibility for maintaining data that would help with this. The committee has made several recommendations to provide for the collection of data, the development and maintenance of a register of newspapers, the facilitation of information sharing between organisations, and the establishment of research programs and initiatives to assist regional publishers.

Second, to provide immediate support for smaller newspapers, the committee has recommended a targeted grants program be developed for small regional publishers. In addition, to support ongoing operating costs that cannot be addressed through grants programs, the committee has recommended the government review its expenditure on print advertising to ensure a minimum amount of 20 per cent goes to Australia's small regional newspapers.

Finally, the committee heard that the media diversity provisions of the Broadcasting Services Act were preventing news organisations from being adaptive and responding to the changing expectations of their communities. The committee has recommended the act be amended to consider a broad range of factors that do not rest solely on the number of operators in a given area when determining appropriate media diversity.

The news media and digital platforms bargaining code has been welcomed by many to address the inequity in bargaining power between small publishers and platforms like Google and Meta. While no digital platform has been designated under the code to date, a number of commercial deals have been made, the details of which were not able to be provided to the committee. The committee has acknowledged in its report that there is a greater opportunity for transparency on these deals and the conditions attached to them.

Also, the committee has recommended the revenue threshold that news organisations must meet be lowered to allow for greater participation in the code. A statutory review into the code which was announced during the committee's inquiry is anticipated to address many of the additional concerns raised by submitters. On behalf of the committee, I extend my sincere thanks to those who participated in the inquiry by completing the survey, preparing submissions, appearing at public hearings and graciously giving their time to share their experiences with the committee. I also want to thank the secretariat for their work in putting this report together.

I commend this report to the House.

Mike Freelander (Macarthur, Australian Labor Party) | Link to this | Hansard source

There being no further speakers, I call the member for Mallee.

Anne Webster (Mallee, National Party) | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the House take note of the report.

Mike Freelander (Macarthur, Australian Labor Party) | Link to this | Hansard source

The debate is adjourned, and the resumption of the debate will be made an order of the day for the next sitting.