Publishers sound off on journalism measures proposed in N.M. legislative session

Yahoo

13-02-2025

Since the 1930s, Barbara Beck's family has owned the Roswell Daily Record in Southern New Mexico, best known for meticulously chronicling the UFO fever that first swept the region and then the nation as a whole in 1947.
But she knows the challenges facing the print news industry today.
"It's important that we protect and that we pay journalists a fair salary," said Beck, publisher of the Record. "It's kind of a struggle to be honest as a small, daily newspaper. But it's something I believe in and fight for every day."
Several measures aimed at supporting members of the media have been introduced in the 2025 legislative session. Among them is a pair of bills from state Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth, D-Santa Fe, that deal with a tax credit for news organizations in addition to a proposal to update protections for reporters' sources and communications.
The bills favorable to media come after a Democratic lawmaker has backed off a proposed overhaul of New Mexico's public record law that critics warned would have an alarming effect on government transparency and accountability — and could potentially have an impact on how journalism is done in the state. Rep. Kathleen Cates, D-Rio Rancho, indicated Wednesday her proposal, House Bill 139, would not be heard by a committee at her request.
She wrote in a text message the legislation was filed to "start discussion."
The media landscape in New Mexico is continuing to experience seismic shifts driven by an erosion in print advertising wrought by the arrival of the internet and a general decline in print subscriptions.
Industry woes extend well beyond the Land of Enchantment: The number of local news deserts expanded in the U.S. last year, with 127 newspapers shuttering, leaving nearly 55 million Americans with limited to no access to local news, according to a report from Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism.
Tax incentive for media
Senate Bill 110 — sponsored by Wirth — would create a refundable tax credit for local news organizations equal to 30% of the company's annual wages, according to a bill synopsis from the Legislative Finance Committee; the total amount news organization could claim in a year, under the legislation, would be capped at $4 million.
An analysis from the state Taxation and Revenue Department estimates the bill would cost the state $4 million annually beginning in the 2026 financial year if signed into law.
In the analysis, the Taxation and Revenue Department assumed there are 210 journalists in New Mexico, of which 45% work full time and have a median annual wage of $46,600, using occupation employment and wage statistics estimates.
Carol Clark, the owner and publisher of the Los Alamos Daily Post, said the 13-year-old publication has four reporters on staff currently — and they are all swamped. Clark said her publication and others could use the tax break.
"We are so busy in our newsroom, and we could definitely use another couple of reporters. But because of the state of the economy, we're holding back, being very conservative and careful," Clark said. "This would allow us to bring on a couple of additional reporters, which would expand the coverage we can provide our readers."
Senate Bill 111 — also sponsored by Wirth — creates a refundable tax credit for businesses that provide newspaper printing services for news organizations, with the credit based on the number of and wages paid to the employees of the printer.
Both bills are on Thursday's Senate Tax, Business and Transportation Committee agenda.
'State spying' measure
Titled the "Protect Reporters from Exploitative State Spying Act," House Bill 153 proposes updates to the shield law, which was last amended in 1973, to account for how reporting is done today.
'It updates and strengthens protections for journalists,' said Rep. Sarah Silva, D-Las Cruces, one of the bill's sponsors, during a committee hearing this week.
The legislation would make updates to account for technological advances in journalism by protecting reporters' electronic communications, such as email, from "state spying," according to a statement from Silva.
According to a Legislative Finance Committee analysis, the bill would prohibit a 'state entity,' defined as an agency in the executive branch or an administrative agency of the state with subpoena or other compulsory powers, to compel a journalist to reveal any information identifying a source or the contents of any communications or documents related to putting together or publishing a story.
The state entity would also be prohibited from compelling a cellphone carrier or other similar electronic communications service providers to provide testimony or any document stored on behalf of a covered journalist.
A decades-old state Supreme Court ruling does not permit the Legislature or governor from enacting laws related to rules of evidence in court, meaning only the judicial branch can do that, the statement from Silva said.
The New Mexico Supreme Court enacted its own press shield rule in 1982 that protects journalists' sources in proceedings in local and state courts; separate from the bill, Silva is working to formally request that the Supreme Court's Rules of Evidence Committee consider amendments to the shield rule, her statement said.
Media and transparency advocates said they supported the proposed measure.
"HB 153 is a bill that upholds the First Amendment right to freedom of the press. It will strengthen protections for journalists against compelled disclosure of confidential sources, which will enable journalists to report freely when whistleblowers and informants come forward," wrote Christine Barber, executive director of the New Mexico Foundation for Open Government, in an email.
Beck, of the Roswell Daily Record, said she believes the bill contemplates sensible updates to the shield law in a digital era that presents new challenges around cybersecurity and surveillance.
"It's an important thing to do. With all of the hacking stuff going on, I know for our website we constantly have issues with hackers trying to get in," Beck said. "I think it's very important that we protect journalism."
The bill passed the House Consumer and Public Affairs Committee on a 4-2 vote on Tuesday following about 30 minutes of discussion. Some controversy broke out in the committee because Rep. John Block, R-Alamogordo, and Rep. Stefani Lord, R-Sandia Park, complained Lord was not given sufficient time to ask questions by committee chair Joanne Ferrary, a Las Cruces Democrat.
"It's very frustrating that, if I was a Democrat, I would have been able to ask the questions," Lord said. "But because I'm not, I'm not going to be able to get [to] them, so … I am absolutely voting no on this bill, because I don't know enough about it."