The closing of Bklyner, the diminishing coverage of Brooklyn, the tilt toward p.r., and a glimmer of game-changing hope for local news

In another loss within the already limited world of local (and especially Brooklyn) news, we learned 8/26/21 from Bklyner founder/editor Liena Zagare that Bklyner's Last Day: Sept. 10. 

(I wrote several articles for Bklyner, notably a 6/9/20 essay about the Barclays Center, Brooklyn's Accidental New Town Square.)

The online publication--which started as a single blog and then absorbed other neighborhood sites--was never anchored in the print revenues that still support the Brooklyn Paper, the "largest" local publication, and the Brooklyn Eagle, which limps along. 

The Brooklyn Paper is part of the ever-growing Schneps Media empire, which includes Brownstoner, amNY, and multiple publications in Queens and on Long Island. They do some good work, but... publisher Vicki Schneps recently hosted a fundraiser for mayoral frontrunner Eric Adams, and Schneps publishes BP Adams' promotional publication. That doesn't bode well.

Money troubles

At Bklyner, a modest monthly subscription fee, along with some recent advertising by the city, was not enough to keep it afloat. As Zagare put it:

I’ve learned that Brooklyn people can be deeply kind and generous with total strangers, and always step up when it is truly needed. I have also learned that people do not, generally, pay for news.
This makes being in the business of news really hard...

Beyond that, Zagare--who has three kids and other commitments--described herself as "burned out."

I can't blame her, and I understood why being paid peanuts ($75-$150) for my articles didn't mean the editor was getting rich.

It's unfortunate that the dismay expressed (see responses to these tweets) has not yet translated into a sustainable business model for local news--though there are possibilities, as noted below.

Zagare, in her 9/10/21 signoff essay, was clear-eyed:

I'd like to think that Brooklyn will be all right, but local news about it is incredibly scattered when it does get reported, and I fear few stories will be followed consistently. Greenpoint, thanks to the dedication of Julia Moak (follow and support Greenpointers if you live there) and Bushwick, thanks to Alec Meeker (same for Bushwick Daily) will continue to get covered as long as these two keep going. Zawadi Morris at BK Reader has been steadily covering the issues of Black Brooklyn.

But there is quite a bit of Brooklyn beyond that. It's great that we can discover new restaurants and businesses easily on social media and get Citizen updates on crimes as they happen. But to understand society and how it functions means asking, in a consistent and ongoing way, why something is or is not happening. It is hard to do something about something you do not know about.

Yes, the presence of those publications--and Bklyner--meant that more stories were/are covered, but even with that, a lot has been missed, especially the topics that require more depth and time. Brooklyn, in population, is the equivalent of a city.

For a while, there's been way too little coverage of Brooklyn, and it's getting worse, especially since the daily newspapers have receded.

Power shifting to p.r.

For now, a lot of (former) reporters, or those with similar skills, can earn more money working for a government agency, or a public relations/consulting firm. That means a loss of institutional memory. It also empowers those p.r. firms and others trying to steer the discourse.

For example, while covering the story of the 840 Atlantic development, I noticed pro-project essays in the Brooklyn Paper, amNY, and the Brooklyn Eagle, likely written and/or steered by p.r. consultant BerlinRosen (which didn't respond to my questions about the source of those essays). 

After all, the firm has a track record of orchestrating the grassroots.

Another model?

Can academic institutions step up? Maybe.

Happy to discuss. @newmarkjschool runs 2 papers in the Bronx. We worked w/@nytimes years ago on The Local in Brooklyn & handed it off to @bklyner. Hyperlocal is hard & needs investment in revenue to survive. We're also talking w/@pilhofer's @tinynewsco.

— Jeff Jarvis (@jeffjarvis) September 3, 2021

What next?        

There may be more money for local news if Congress acts, which is why--I speculate--that Zagare, in her essay, left the door slightly ajar, stating Bklyner had "no immediate date or plans for resuming."

As Washington Post media columnist Margaret Sullivan wrote 8/31/21, Congress may be about to help local news. It can’t happen soon enough.:

Bipartisan support in Congress has gathered for the Local Journalism Sustainability Act, and its supporters believe there’s a decent chance it will be a part of the huge spending bill that Congress is now focusing on.

The proposal, which provides a series of tax credits rather than direct grants, is intended to give local newspapers, digital-only publications and other local news organizations a chance to be financially viable as they figure out how to make their way in the new digital world. 

...One provision is a tax credit of up to $250 for consumers to either subscribe to a local newspaper or donate to a local nonprofit news organization. Another is a five-year tax credit for local news organizations for each local reporter on their payrolls. The third is a five-year tax credit that gives small businesses a tax incentive to advertise with local newspapers and local radio and television stations.

Remember, since Bklyner was asking for only $5 a month, and even that wasn't enough.

By contrast, consider several hundred thousand Brooklynites steering $250 credits to local news! That could support several publications, and many more staffers--and that's not counting those other tax credits.

Sullivan noted that, even were if bill's provisions become law, they won't "solve the local news problem," which also results from the loss of local advertising. But it could be a bridge to a better future.

The FAQ

The Rebulid Local News coaltion, backer of The Local Journalism Sustainability Act (which is spearheaded by Brooklynite Steven Waldman), offers an FAQ, including:

How big are the benefits? 

Local residents could get a credit of up to $250 to buy a local news subscription or donate to a local nonprofit news organization. To earn the full benefit, consumers would need to put in 20 percent themselves in the first year and 50 percent in subsequent years.

Small businesses, which the Senate version of the bill defines as those with less than 50 employees, could get $5,000 to help pay for any advertising they place in local publications and $2,500 each of the remaining four years of the bill.

Most important, local publications would receive a refundable payroll tax credit of up to $25,000 for each journalist on staff. To be clear, this doesn’t merely reimburse them for what they pay in payroll taxes; the newsroom would actually get $25,000 from the government to help cover a reporter with a $50,000 salary. The bill defines a journalist as almost anybody involved in the production of local news, from photographers to reporters to editors. After the first year, publications could receive up to $15,000 per local journalist.

Note that people need not itemize their taxes, but they can't get the credit if they don't pay federal taxes.

As to whether this would help liberal or conservative publications, the response:

This bill focuses on rebuilding local news, covering the nitty gritty issues of concern to all communities. That is a nonpartisan issue. What’s more, the government will not be making subjective decisions about who gets to benefit — so Republican administrations cannot steer money to conservative media; Democratic administrations cannot push it toward their favored publications. And the tax credits for subscriptions go to consumers — so they decide which local publication they prefer. The advertising tax credits go to small businesses — so they pick the local news outlets that would best help them achieve their goals.

Most local publications don't hew to ideological agendas the way cable TV programs do. That said, there will no doubt be local organizations that benefit that you might personally dislike. That is true of the charitable deduction that supports a wide range of charities. But it would so strengthen democracy that it will be well worth us all putting up with some money going to some places we don’t like.

What about the future?

Isn’t this just a band aid that won't truly help local news in the long run?

This bill incorporates some concepts that improve the long-term prospects of local journalism. First, local reporting is the key. For a while, there was a hope that algorithms, social media or crowdfunding alone would provide the information that communities need. That’s not true. We need reporters, too. The heart of the bill is providing a subsidy to help hire and retain local journalists. Doing better reporting will make it more likely for startups to get traction and legacy media to better serve their communities.

Second, it’s become clear that local news must reduce its dependence on advertisements and grow their digital subscription revenue. The subsidy for buying subscriptions could help accelerate this transition to a more subscription-based model.

Third, this gives a huge boost to the nonprofit local news world. With help, they could become a much bigger part of local news ecosystems, especially where there are news deserts.

What about standalone journalists?

From the FAQ:

Aren’t most small media too poor to take advantage of this program?

The bill currently requires only that you have one reporter. (Actually, the current versions only require 100 hours per quarter of local journalism; but we’re hoping that gets changed to a requirement for one full time reporter.) And the definition of journalist includes editors. So most of even the smallest local media should be able to participate.

Reading the FAQ & wondering:
--does LJSA apply to publications that are freely available today but request voluntary contributions (or is it only a *subscription*)
--hadn't thought about this til today but does it apply to, um, standalone journalists w/their own local blogs?

— Norman Oder (@AYReport) September 9, 2021

I didn't get a response (yet), and I'm not holding my breath for financial support, but it did make me wonder--for a moment.

Flaws and questions

Actually, the answer seems no, according to a 9/10/21 article in Columbia Journalism Review, Who will the Local Journalism Sustainability Act Serve?, which raised deeper questions about the proposal:

Tracie Powell, principal and founder of The Pivot Fund, a venture philanthropy aimed at providing financial support for community news organizations led by people of color, has criticized several elements of the bill for failing to consider the information habits of historically marginalized groups. The legislation’s emphasis on subscriptions ignores publications that aren’t subscription-based, Powell wrote in August, and the tax credits for advertisers do little to incentivize advertising in publications that currently see little to no advertising revenue. Outlets that rely on contractors or freelance labor are also limited in their ability to make use of payroll credits. These elements limit assistance to many media outlets aiming to serve communities of color, Powell says.

Those are problems, especially since the proposal would empower some legacy companies more interested in profit than in service.

But at least these discussions are on the table.