New Bill Passed in Illinois
Rachael Hirstein
Sept. 9, 2021
On Aug. 23, Gov. Pritzker approved Senate Bill 0134 (SB0134) creating the Local Journalism Task Force. The purpose of SB0134 is to research communities underrepresented by local journalism in Illinois and develop solutions to the issues. This group consists of two appointed members from the House of Representatives, two appointed members of the Senate, a Governor-appointed member, and representatives from three different universities and five different associations and councils. The topics being addressed by the Task Force include press coverage adequacy, the residents-to-media outlets ratio, local news history, the business models used by media outlets, the social media impact, how to improve access to local news outlets, and public policy solutions set to increase sustainability.
The Task Force plans to engage with these communities first hand so they can discover how each community is unique; based on the different issues in each area, the Task Force will create a solution ensuring a more effective journalism model for the future. This bill gives smaller Illinois communities a bigger voice so they will not be forgotten or left out. SB0134 goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2022; to see the entirety of SB0314, click here.