While Its Finances Improve, USPS Seeks to Squeeze More Revenue Out of Mailers
USPS just announced proposed postal rate increases that, in some cases, are seven times the rate of inflation. Here are the proposed rates that pertain to newspapers ... Read More
News Media for Open Government Encourages Congress to Take Actions to Support Journalists, a Free Press and an Open and More Accountable Government
Recent events continue to demonstrate that journalism and journalists are a necessary part of our democracy and critical to a well-functioning government and an informed electorate. There are many challenges for news media and journalists in today’s landscape. As members ... Read More
Newspapers Challenge Removal of Rate Cap Established by Congress
The News Media Alliance and the National Newspaper Association have joined a legal challenge of an order by the Postal Regulatory Commission that would effectively eliminate a Congressionally-mandated limit on postal rate increases for Periodicals and Marketing Mail ... Read More
News Media for Open Government Outlines Recommendations for Biden-Harris Transition Team
The News Media for Open Government today sent a position paper to President-Elect Joseph Biden and Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris’s transition team, outlining policy objectives that support and strengthen openness in government and the right to a free and independent ... Read More
New Rule May Mean Unsustainable Postal Rates for Newspapers
On November 30, the Postal Regulatory Commission approved a rule, establishing a new rate-setting system that eliminates the previously implemented cap on postage rates which could harm newspapers and ultimately weaken the nation’s postal system. ... Read More
Trump Administration’s Proposal to Limit Foreign Journalist Visas is a Violation of Press Freedom
The Alliance joined the Reporters Committee for the Freedom of the Press and 36 other media organizations urging the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to scrap a proposal introduced in September that would restrict visas for foreign journalists working in ... Read More
USPS Proposes Rate Changes – Minor to No Change for Newspapers’ Mailed Products
On October 9, the United States Postal Service announced rate changes for Marketing Mail and for Periodicals mail ... Read More
Bipartisan Bill Introduced to Provide Tax Incentives in Support of Local Journalism
A bipartisan group of policymakers in the House of Representatives on July 16 introduced H.R. 7640, the Local Journalism Sustainability Act, which, if enacted, would provide a series of tax credits for news consumers, news organizations and local newspaper and ... Read More
California Subscription Bill Is Unnecessary, Ignores Recent Voluntary Efforts
As we have seen with other legislation originating in California, AB 2811 could set in motion a patchwork of different state laws, which would increase regulatory costs on news publishers and could potentially stunt the growth of reader revenue at ... Read More
Hundreds of Senators, Representatives Ask Trump Administration to Direct Advertising to Help Local Media Outlets During COVID-19
Last week, Members of Congress sent two letters encouraging the Trump Administration to direct existing government advertising campaigns to local newspapers and broadcasters ... Read More
Visa’s New Subscription Policy Moves Forward
As previously announced, Visa will implement a new policy around subscription services that may impact newspaper publishers. This new policy will go into effect on April 18 and establishes new rules for consumer disclosure and acceptance of free trials and ... Read More
Alliance, Others Encourage USPS to Incentivize Business Mailings Amid COVID-19 Crisis
The Alliance and 11 other business associations sent a letter to the United States Postal Service (USPS) encouraging the agency to put forward measures in the coming weeks that will provide business mailers with incentives to stay in our nation’s ... Read More
Economic Stimulus Update from Washington
The Senate passed H.R. 6201, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, in a 90-8 vote, that would make coronavirus tests free, ensure students continue to receive free lunches, and expand unemployment insurance ... Read More
Proposed Postal Rate Increases Would be Unsustainable for Newspapers
Currently, USPS can raise or lower rates for products such as Periodicals and Marketing Mail (e.g. TMC products) on an annual basis, with smaller, predictable rate increases that do not exceed the inflation-based price cap. But this pricing structure that ... Read More
Legal Rights While Covering Elections: Training at WNA Annual Convention
As the presidential campaign season moves into high gear, press organizations are working to train journalists so they know their rights. The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press and the National Press Photographers Association are providing training sessions at the ... Read More
Congressional Hearing Highlights Importance of National Memorial to Fallen Journalists
A national memorial is important for paying tribute to journalists who perished not only while reporting on the front lines of battle, but those whose lives were lost while simply fulfilling their duty to deliver the news. That was the ... Read More
NMOG Remembers Rep. Elijah Cummings for Steadfast Work for Open Government
News Media for Open Government joins those who say goodbye to Rep. Elijah E. Cummings (D-MD-7) today, while remembering his tireless efforts to improve government transparency ... Read More
Postal Service Announces New Rates
The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) on October 9 filed notice for new postal rates for market-dominant products, which includes Marketing Mail and Periodicals. If approved by the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) in the coming weeks, the new rates will take ... Read More
What You Need to Know about the Department of Labor’s New Overtime Rule
The News Media Alliance has provided a quick-reference one-pager that summarizes key provisions of the new DOL Overtime rule, as well as relevant FLSA exemptions ... Read More
Mastercard, With Its Negative Option Policy, Does Not Intend to Cover Newspapers
After Mastercard recently announced a new draft policy aimed at reigning in misleading “negative option” campaigns, the Alliance informed Mastercard of the potential for the policy to hurt newspapers’ efforts to grow subscription revenue. The Alliance successfully convinced the credit ... Read More
