Sen. Lindsey Graham (Republican-States Colonist), who is already being criticized for his bellicose statements regarding the Ukraine-Russia conflict has now backed a bill to legalize collusion between Big Media & Big Tech. This would empower corporate media giants such as CNN and the New York Times at all the expense of independent creators.
The Journalism Competition and Preservation Act (JCPA) does exactly the opposite of its promises. It protects discredited media companies against competition by allowing them form a legal cartel that can collectively bargain with Silicon Valley.
The bill would allow media giants to make deals with Facebook, Google and Twitter to prioritize their content, to the detriment or Substack authors, podcasters, and YouTubers.
Republican voters are highly critical of the corporate media. Pew reports that only 35% of Republicans trust national news agencies more than 78 percent of Democrats.
Republican politicians often criticize liberal media’s bias. However, Sen. Graham and a variety of Republican senators, including Sens. Cynthia Lummis and Rand Paul, as well as John Kennedy, support a bill that would unfairly give large news corporations an unfair advantage over other competitors.
The bill’s cosponsorship by Sen. Graham earlier this month came at a time in which the South Carolina senator faces across-the-aisle allegations of recklessness from both his Republican colleagues and himself for his bellicose remarks on Russia. After Graham’s call for the assassination Vladimir Putin, Sen. Ted Cruz (R.TX) rebuked Graham.
One Republican politician supported Sen. Graham — the notorious Trump-hater Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-IL), who was the only Republican other that Rep. Liz Cheney on Jan 6th.
Graham, who backed the JCPA is also on the opposing side of Republican leaders in Congress.
Rep. Kevin McCarthy, Republican of California, has called the JCPA the “antithesis of conservatism” while Rep. Jim Jordan (R.OH) warned that it would give the media “cartel-power.”
Sens. Sens. Rubio warned that it would increase “collusion between Big Media & Big Tech”, while Blackburn said it would empower Big Tech’s censors.
Nathan Simington, Republican FCC Commissioner, warned that the bill would give rise to national media monopolies at all costs to local journalism.
The JCPA would grant big media legal privileges that are not available to other industries.
Big Media used its megaphone to make it seem that tech companies have disrupted almost every major industry in the past decade. This is despite the fact that tech companies have rigged their platforms to favor establishment media.
Big Tech companies directly fund the establishment media – both Google and Facebook pay hundreds of millions to the wealthiest media companies despite the fact they are less trusted than independent journalists or podcasters.
Big Tech favors established media in its algorithms. It boosts handpicked sources for search results while suppressing independent media.
Big Tech elevates establishment media up to the status “fact-checkers”, allowing them suppress their rivals.
CNN’s popularity is boosted by the number of deals it has to broadcast continuously in airports, hotel lobbys and other public places.
Favoritism from Big Tech can have a similar effect. It forces establishment media content into news feeds and search results for a public that distrusts the industry. Even if it is ignored, media content can still be seen by advertisers and business partners, increasing their sales and satisfaction.
The establishment media still wants more from Big Tech, despite these benefits. A genuine free market in information sources on major tech platforms could lead to established media outlets such as CNN being overtaken by more trustworthy and reliable competitors.
Independent journalist Glenn Greenwald said that the House’s bill was too powerful at a hearing last year.
Greenwald stated, “I believe that the problem with Silicon Valley’s monopolistic power and its ability interfere in our politics as well as to impede a freedom of press is very serious.”
“But sometimes it’s not the media, it’s journalists who demand that that power is exercised in a censorious manner in a way which undermines a free press.”
The Electronic Frontier Foundation, a prominent advocacy group promoting online freedom, claims that the JCPA will enable “media near-monopolies” and not curb Big Tech’s monopoly power.
