America’s News Media Alliance and National Newspaper Association have stepped up their campaign on behalf of daily and community newspapers with a letter to president Joe Biden and a week of virtual meetings.

In their letter, the associations urge the president to use local newspaper advertising to help reach the goal of 70 per cent vaccinated by July 4, with NMA chief executive David Chavern saying the best way to reach individuals in rural or distressed areas is through a printed newspaper.

A campaign this week will see virtual meetings between Alliance member newspaper executives and their members of Congress to advocate for the passage of the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act – also known as the ‘Safe Harbor bill’.

Executives representing Advance Publications, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Boston Globe, CNHI, Gannett, Los Angeles Times, McClatchy, Tampa Bay Times/Times Publishing, Trib Total Media and Tribune Publishing Company are set to meet with key lawmakers.

Chavern said a safe harbour for news was the best solution to correcting the current imbalance in the competitive landscape. “As we have seen in Australia and Europe, the world is moving toward new compensation systems for publishers.

“A healthy democracy needs quality journalism now more than ever, and we must ensure that the digital ecosystem returns value back to the people who create that journalism.”

Reintroduced in the House and Senate in March, the Act would provide a limited, temporary safe harbour for news publishers to collectively negotiate with dominant tech platforms such as Facebook and Google, for fair compensation for the use of their content.

Since 2018, NMA has been vocally advocating for legislation in the US that would “combat the spread of misinformation, improve the quality and accessibility of reporting, and ensure that local journalists are able to continue their critical work”.

A Voter Voice campaign encouraged industry members and the public to contact their members of Congress and ask them to support the bill.