The New York Local Journalism Sustainability Act would provide tax credits to local community-based newspapers for hiring local news reporters. It is important to lobby Governor Kathy Hochul, Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, along with your local State Senator and State Assembly members to support this critical legislation. Most communities are down to one local daily or weekly newspaper. Newspapers have to deal with increasing costs for newsprint, delivery, and distribution as well as reduced advertising revenues and competition from the Internet and other news information sources.
Daily newspapers concentrate on international, Washington, Albany, business, and sports stories. They have few reporters covering local neighborhood news. Weekly newspapers fill the void for coverage of local community news.
I’m grateful that you have afforded me the opportunity to express my views via letters to the editor, along with others who may have different opinions on the issues of the day.
Albany needs to join us in supporting weekly community newspapers. Readers patronize advertisers; they provide the revenues to help keep them in business. Let us hope there continues to be room for everyone, including the Smithtown Messenger, Brookhaven Messenger, and Islip Messenger.
Larry Penner
Long Time Reader and Contributor
Great Neck
