# Should the government subsidize newspapers? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [December 19, 2016, 9:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-government-subsidize-newspapers/775122 "2016-12-19T09:22:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 3\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2016, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-government-subsidize-newspapers/775122/22 "2016-12-24T06:05:51Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > Government subsidies would destroy whatever good the press is supposed to do. The idea is that they serve as a sort of unofficial check on government power, a watchdog of sorts, “speaking truth to power”. How well are they going to do that when it’s the power that’s cutting their checks? This is one of those things that sounds “obvious” yet is not necessarily true and often turns out to be counter-intuitive. The fact is, it’s quite common for major industrialized countries around the world to support independent media such as public broadcasting, and some such as Sweden have subsidies specifically for newspapers. Legislatively established principles of independence already exist in all kinds of government areas. We have auditors-general, for example, who work for the government but whose job is to hold the government accountable for its spending and who routinely issue scathing public reports about government malfeasance. As already mentioned, the CBC in Canada receives public funding and is a valued national institution and trusted source of news, and when appropriate has criticized parties on both the left and the right and the government of the day. We also need to keep in mind that absence of government subsidies means greater dependence on commercial revenue, which means not only being sensitive to the interests of your advertisers, but can also means an unhealthy preoccupation with news that sells rather than news that is important, a problem that often plagues commercial media. So the subsidy question is far more complex than the overly simplistic idea that subsidized media will never criticize the government that is supporting them. Sweden’s newspaper subsidies are part of a vibrant system where a high proportion of citizens are newspaper readers and the subsidies help to support papers with lesser market share to enhance competition. Surely those are all good things, and surely we should all be in favor of anything that contributes to a more informed public. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2016, 6:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-government-subsidize-newspapers/775122/23 "2016-12-24T06:36:05Z")
Seems the “government” should just subsidize “reporters” and not the entire means of transmitting their stories via wood pulp. Would be cheaper that way. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2016, 6:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-government-subsidize-newspapers/775122/24 "2016-12-24T06:58:21Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > Seems the “government” should just subsidize “reporters” and not the entire means of transmitting their stories via wood pulp. Would be cheaper that way. They do. They’re called “Unemployment Benefits”. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-government-subsidize-newspapers/775122.md?page=1)