Press funding

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Press funding refers to the subsidization of print media.

Types of distinction

Press funding can be direct or indirect. Direct measures are, for example, the payment of subsidies, usually subject to certain criteria, or the partial or full reimbursement of expenses for sending newspapers ("sales promotion"). Indirect support is, for example, lower taxation for newspaper companies. In a promotion that over the print media (daily and weekly newspapers and magazines) goes, is usually from a media promotion of the question.

purpose

The aim of press funding is to increase or maintain media diversity in order to strengthen democracy. Accordingly, one of the earliest examples of press funding was found in the US after it gained independence from Britain. In Great Britain itself, on the other hand, newspapers were heavily taxed separately until 1855 in order to regulate the spread of revolutionary ideas based on the French Revolution .

Today, the promotion of the press often serves to preserve media diversity away from the metropolitan areas.

history

One of the earliest examples of indirect press funding can be found in the early days of the United States . In the course of drafting the Post Office Act in 1792, Congress debated the proposal to exempt the mailing of newspapers from shipping costs. Eventually it was agreed to keep the shipping costs for newspapers to a minimum. For example, one cent had to be paid for sending a newspaper over 100 miles , while an ordinary letter cost six cents over a distance of up to 60 miles. Within the boundaries of a county there was a period of total exemption from shipping charges for newspapers. The Post Office Act, which, in addition to the subsidized tariff for newspapers, also guaranteed the confidentiality of letters and federal competence for postal routes, is now considered a milestone in the democratic development of the USA.

Opposing tendencies, namely a separate high taxation on newspapers in the form of an increased stamp duty , were found in Great Britain in the early 18th century. For fear of the spread of revolutionary ideas in the course of the French Revolution, this tax was further increased and only abolished in 1855.

Dissemination of press funding

Press funding is widespread in Europe. Countries with press funding in Europe include:

criticism

Criticisms of press funding, for example from political parties or from mostly larger media, are the distortion of competition and the lack of transparency in the allocation of funding, for example when government-friendly newspapers are funded more than others, or media critical of the government receive no or less funding .

The distribution of funds according to the “ watering can principle ”, ie the even distribution of funds to all print media without qualitative requirements, as is usually the case with sales promotion, is also frequently criticized .

literature

  • Mario Martini : Press funding in the crosshairs of Union law, EuZW 2015, 821–827.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Hans-Dieter Gelfert: Edgar Allan Poe. Beck Verlag, Munich 2008, ISBN 3-406-57709-1 , p. 21
  2. ^ Alfred Dupont Chandler, James W. Cortada: A Nation Transformed by Information. Oxford University Press, 2000, especially pp. 58f
  3. ↑ Richard R.John: Spreading the News. The American Postal System from Franklin to Monroe. Harvard University Press, 1998
  4. ^ Opinion of the Swiss Federal Council on: Parliamentary initiative for press funding through participation in distribution costs (PDF; 506 kB). February 15, 2007 (accessed October 22, 2008)
  5. ↑ taz of February 20, 2018: "Subsidies against newspaper dying - Sweden promotes local press" (accessed on June 21, 2018)
  6. ↑ a b c Safeguarding diversity of opinion and the press in Germany. ( Memento of the original from June 1, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / dju.verdi.de archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. ver-di Federal Board, September 22, 2002 (accessed October 22, 2008)
  7. ↑ a b Media Talk 2008: Quality in the local media - only demanding or also promoting?  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Dead Link / www.tlm.de   Thuringian State Media Authority and RTR, June 17, 2008 (accessed October 22, 2008)