PL of Fake News does not only benefit large vehicle, says ANJ – 04/30/2023 – Politics

The ANJ (National Association of Newspapers) said, in a note released on Friday (28), that the remuneration of journalistic content by the platforms provided for in the Bill of Fake News benefits all journalism producers.

In the text, the president of the association, Marcelo Rech, classified it as totally unrealistic to state that only larger vehicles would benefit from the measure.

The demonstration was made before the positioning of Google, released on Saturday (29), against the device. For the company, the project may discourage new investments in journalism.

The PL establishes that the agreement on the payment method must be made between the platforms and the journalistic companies. The cost will not be passed on to the end user.

The expectation is that the merits of the PL will be voted on in the plenary of the Chamber next Tuesday (2). If approved, the text will go to the Senate.

Rech, who is a former president of the World Forum of Editors and a member of the executive committee of the World Newsmedia Association, says that where laws intended to remunerate journalistic content have been adopted, there has been a benefit for the entire information ecosystem.

The most advanced case is that of Australia, which passed a law on the subject in 2021. Rech cites a report in that country that highlighted the possibility of small vehicles negotiating collectively (in one case, 180 local publications closed deals through a regional press association).

In Canada, a similar project should be approved this semester. The legislation provides that vehicles with at least two journalists would be accredited for collective negotiations.

The president of the ANJ points out that the opinion of Deputy Orlando Silva (PC do B-SP) allows that even individual journalistic micro-companies would be entitled to remuneration, in a stimulus to innovation and diversity in the journalistic environment.

“India, Indonesia, the United Kingdom and the United States, as well as the European Union, are following the same path of valuing professional journalism to fight the disinformation epidemic”, says Rech.