Subsidy in the Newspaper Industry Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Subsidy in the Newspaper Industry - Essay Example This very reason, a discussion and analysis of the way in which subsidies can and should be engaged is required so that the ultimate utility to follow society can be found. For purposes of this brief analysis, the author will focus upon necessity and/or exemptions from tax revenue with regards to print journalism. As a function of such a method of research, the possible benefits, it is, and drawbacks will be discussed as well as an analysis and discussion into these stakeholders with this particular debate and the means by which such a method of differs from many of the other approaches that have thus far been discussed within the course. The first and most obvious stakeholder with regards to this particular issue is the tax payer himself/herself. As the one who is most responsible for subsidizing the newsprint organization, this stakeholder is directly involved in any wealth redistribution that might take place in the form of a government subsidy. A secondary, and obvious, stakehold er is the newsprint organization itself. A third stakeholder can be determined as broader society as it would be the ones that would feel the positive secondary and tangential benefits and drawbacks of newsprint subsidization. Naturally, through such a group of stakeholders it must also be noted that the government itself can be considered a stakeholder as well.1 Through an examination of the utility and lack of utility that newsprint subsidization effects on each of these stakeholders, it it’s the hope of this author to paint a more broad and nuanced view of this very issue to the reader. Firstly, it must be understood that newsprint subsidization is ultimately a tool that the government can use to increase and retain a talent pool within a given economy. Ultimately, the reader does not need to go into a great level of research or detail to note the fact that newsprint organizations are rapidly losing market share to technology and the means through which news is succinctly and immediately represented via the Internet. However, even though technological change and the shift away from newsprint have a definitive advantage, it also comes at a definitive disadvantage for society. A litany of studies has noted the fact that individuals who consume the majority of their news from the Internet and/or TV outlets invariably spend much less of their time reading.2 Moreover, and integration with newsprint invariably increases the level of current affairs knowledge and effective communication skills that the individual who utilizes it represents. The core question with regards to this dynamic is whether or not subsidized nation of newsprint is in and of itself worth the expense. As the readership of newspapers in general has dropped precipitously over the past several years, the ultimate utility that can be gained by subsidizing newsprint must be weighed against the ultimate loss that would be incurred with regards to the subsidy/tax money that would be spent. An other important element of newspaper/newsprint subsidization is with regards to the historical preservation element. What is meant by this is the fact that many of the newspapers that currently exist throughout the developed world has been in existence for the better part of several centuries.3 Ultimately, some of the oldest newspapers in the world paid back to the very beginning of modern print journalism and/or the printing press. As a function of this, allowing newsprint to merely fold and shutter its doors would obviously have a negative impact with regards to the cultural and historical legacy that these could continue to promote. However, once again, the stakeholders in this issue must be weighed as compared to the