Founder and publisher Alicia Ramirez spoke at Tuesday’s California Senate Judiciary Committee informational hearing on the importance of journalism in the digital age calling on legislators to include small, independent publications like The Riverside Record in policy discussions.
“As state legislators, you have a mandate to act in the best interest of the people of California, and any potential legislative solution to the local news crisis must put the information needs of your constituents first,” Ramirez said during the public comment portion of the meeting. “Meaning that small, independent publishers like myself must have a seat at the table during the drafting process.”
During the hearing, held at the University of California Los Angeles School of Law, legislators heard about the state of digital news, the impact technology has had on the news industry, the state of local news and reporting and how policies in countries such as Australia and Canada have impacted local news there — both positively and negatively.
The hearing was held in an effort to give state legislators an opportunity to learn more about the state of journalism across California, the challenges local newsrooms face and how potential legislative solutions — including the California Journalism Preservation Act (AB 886) — can help support a robust free press for all Californians.
A full video of the hearing can be found here on the senate’s website.
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