A Novel Means to Increase Access to Local News: Analyzing the Benefits and Costs of Zero-Rating

The dismal and declining state of local news has motivated bipartisan efforts to “save” this important aspect of a strong civic sphere. A full review of these efforts is beyond the scope of this paper, but an initial review suggests that recent legislative proposals will fall short of reviving local news, if enacted. It follows that other means of assisting the generation and distribution of local news must be considered. One such means is mandating that Internet Service Providers zero-rate content provided by local news outlets.

In short, zero-rating results in certain data not counting toward a user’s data cap or from generating any charges for excess consumption of particular data. Zero-rating local news content can assist the industry in two ways: first, it increases the market for local news by increasing adoption of broadband, and second, it increases the consumption of local news by incentivizing consumers to prioritize local news over other sources of news. The Federal Communications Commission can and should lead this policy intervention. The agency has the authority to mandate that ISPs zero-rate local news content.

Furthermore, such a mandate would align with the FCC’s decades-long efforts to bolster the consumption and quality of local news.