This is probably the best place to share this following article.
The breakdown of the funding by sector is $20m for television, $18m for publishing and $12m for radio – but the government is not revealing the individual business names at this stage because the grant agreements are yet to be signed.
The Morrison Government has today announced that 107 regional publishers and broadcasters who applied to the Public Interest News Gathering (PING) Program will receive a share of $50 million in funding committed to support regional news services in 2020-21.
Minister for Communications, Cyber Safety and the Arts, the Hon Paul Fletcher MP, said this funding will support newspaper businesses and commercial broadcasters across regional and remote Australia.
“These are unprecedented circumstances in regional media - with COVID-19 triggering catastrophic drops in advertising revenue leading to many newspapers suspending operations and threatening the sustainability of regional broadcasters.
“The Morrison Government is responding to these exceptional circumstances with this specific and time-limited support measure, designed to assist the continued provision of quality news and information to communities across regional and remote Australia.
“Through this program the Government is providing $20 million for television, $18 million for publishing and $12 million for radio, with funds to flow from July.
“Public interest journalism is critical to keeping communities informed. PING will provide direct support for the continued provision of local and regional journalism, which has never been more important than in recent times when communities across Australia need access to trusted sources of news and information,” Minister Fletcher said.
Of the 107 eligible applicants, there are 92 publishers, 13 for radio and five for television. Three applicants were successful across two streams.
“The majority of the publishers receiving grants under this program operate small-to-medium businesses. Local papers are the life-blood of many towns across Australia. They connect communities and keep people informed.
“Successful applicants will put these funds to good use to support a broad range of activities such as staff wages, training and technology upgrades that will allow them to keep delivering news that local communities need and want,” Minister Fletcher said.
Applications were assessed through a demand-driven grant process conducted by the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications. In determining funding amounts for each sector, consideration was given to the overall reach of each media sector and revenue used to produce public interest journalism.
The Department will work with successful applicants to develop and enter into grant arrangements as soon as possible. Information on grantees will be published on GrantsConnect at www.grants.gov.au following the execution of grant agreements.
Consistent with the PING guidelines, grants are conditional on publishers of suspended mastheads returning them to operation and recommencing print distribution.
The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has today announced the successful grant recipients of the 2020 Round of the Regional and Small Publishers Innovation Fund.
Forty-one small and regional publishers will share in the $5 million available in the 2020 Round to help them address some of the significant challenges facing the news industry.
ACMA Chair Nerida O’Loughlin said the funding is a boost for public interest journalism, particularly in regional areas with two-thirds of the available funding being awarded to regional applicants.
“The Innovation Fund has a strong record of helping news publishers improve their sustainability. This new round of funding will support projects that will improve each grantee’s capacity to generate public interest journalism including funding for journalists, staff training, new digital technology and website upgrades,” Ms O’Loughlin said.
Successful recipients include:
- The Trustee for Parkes-Brown Family Trust ( Glasshouse Country News —Glasshouse Mountains, Queensland) will receive up to $108,200 to develop a new website and digital content publishing platform to support its production of public interest journalism and increase efficiency in production.
- North Central Review Pty Ltd ( North Central Review —Mitchell Shire, Victoria) will receive up to $119,410 to engage a digital marketing officer and to upgrade its online sales technology and video production equipment to improve its digital and social media presence.
- Word Count Media Pty Ltd ( Pittwater Life magazine , Pittwater NSW) will receive up to $42,768 to engage two specialist freelance journalists to increase public interest journalism output and support its local service delivery.
Of the forty-one successful grant recipients, 16 are from New South Wales, 12 are from Victoria, 6 are from Queensland, 2 are from South Australia, 2 are from the ACT, 2 are from Tasmania and one is from Western Australia.
The ACMA received more than 300 applications for the 2020 Round, almost three times the previous round.
The ACMA carefully assessed each application against eligibility and merit criteria and was assisted by an independent advisory committee appointed by the Minister for Communications, Cyber Safety and the Arts, the Hon Paul Fletcher MP.
In total, the ACMA has awarded more than $17.6 million under the Innovation Fund since 2018. The government also recently announced that 107 regional publishers and broadcasters will receive a share of $50 million in funding under its Public Interest News Gathering (PING) program.
While applicants could apply for both funds, the ACMA cannot fund the same activities that have been funded under the PING. The ACMA will now work with all successful 2020 Round recipients to negotiate the funding for eligible activities and finalise grant agreements.
The Innovation Fund and the PING are part of the government’s $60.4 million Regional and Small Publishers Jobs and Innovation Package.
UPDATE 21/8:
UPDATE 5/11:
The Border Watch was saved by several businessmen in September and resumed as a weekly with a digital presence on October 16.
Broken Hill’s only newspaper, The Barrier Daily Truth, features on Australian Story next Monday. It was one of many small regional papers affected by the pandemic.
Having being born in Broken Hill, I truely love that newspaper. Great mix of local, nsw/sa and international news.