This interview is part of an occasional series of Q&As with people who are the first to hold their title in their news (or, in this case, news-adjacent) organization. Read through the rest here.
There’s been a spike in legislation that could impact local news outlets in recent years. Some proposals have aimed to unlock funding for the struggling local news industry through tax credits, ad spending, fellowships, or other means. Others have sought to codify legal protections for journalists.
And there’s more to come. Some estimates indicate 25 different states will introduce legislation relevant to local news in 2025. Determined not to let newsrooms get caught on their back foot, Local Independent Online News (LION) Publishers announced last year it would hire a full-time policy person to take “a proactive role” on behalf of its hundreds of member newsrooms.
Chuck Corra, “a veteran of policy and advocacy campaigns in multiple states,” has joined LION as its first-ever associate director of policy and advocacy, the organization announced last month. Previously, Corra worked on campaigns for renewable energy developers and a civics education nonprofit, among others. He describes himself as a “West Virginia native, former Tennessean, [and] current Florida Man.”
Here at Nieman Lab, we have noted what feels to us like a shift — within the news industry — toward being more open to public funding, especially for a struggling local news sector. That’s not to say publishers and journalists have dismissed all of their concerns, which include constitutional questions and government influence. But it seems more and more agree that “the market alone can’t and won’t provide the public good that is local news,” as then Texas Tribune editor-in-chief Sewell Chan wrote in a clear-eyed essay last year. “The stakes are too high for practitioners to sit these debates out.”
LION executive director Chris Krewson said that one segment of LION’s membership, in particular, has been uneasy about adopting a more active role.
“If our experience in California is any guide, the bigger hurdle will be activating nonprofit publishers. Those are a little less than half our membership, but are larger, budget- and staff-wise, than smaller for-profit publishers,” Krewson said. “They’re also keenly aware that there are limits to how much ‘lobbying’ those can do. I have spoken with nonprofit leaders who were hesitant to lend their weight to a proposal because they didn’t want to endanger their nonprofit status. So it’s going to be a process of educating them about the possible, and encouraging them to speak up for their businesses in ways that are compliant — but effective.”
LION has been careful about its own headcount, particularly as news support organizations (or intermediaries) are scrutinized for growing as many local newsrooms struggle to keep the lights on. Sarah Gustavus Lim, director of membership at LION, said that though Krewson had taken on advocacy work in the past, the sheer volume of new and proposed legislation made it clear LION needed a dedicated policy person.
LION’s membership ranges from one-person newsrooms to sites with revenue in the millions. But, as Gustavus Lim noted, the majority of LION members are on the smaller side and work with budgets under $500,000.
“Our members asked for LION to be more proactive, not just playing defense when we become aware of policies that could negatively impact them,” Gustavus Lim said. “We’ve seen many times in the past that if LION and our members are not represented, bills can be written in ways that exclude independent digital publishers.“
In a media lobbying landscape LION sees as dominated by “large hedge fund backed newspapers that have not adapted to a digital ecosystem,” the organization
has framed this new policy position as, in part, a necessary counterweight that will champion digital news outlets’ interests. Krewson has said these lobbying interests can block digital-only publishers from revenue-generating programs such as “public notices, legal ads, state ad buys, and the rest.”
“We think a key benefit of LION membership will be a heads-up early in the process, and updates if and when [legislation] moves forward, with ways for publishers to get involved along the way,” Krewson said.
Membership dues make up only 2 percent of LION’s earned revenue and the organization relies on foundation grants and tech company contracts to fund much of its work. Krewson said the timing for the first-ever policy role was determined not just by finding the money — but the right money. LION has partnered with Facebook and Google but could not, for obvious reasons, rely on Big Tech dollars for this role. (Both companies have been targeted by legislative efforts to boost journalism.) Multi-year funding for the full-time policy position will come primarily from the American Journalism Project, with some additional funding from a recent MacArthur grant.
Nieman Lab asked Corra about how the 2024 election may affect public funding for journalism, expanding the coalition to include groups that support small businesses and entrepreneurs, and ensuring small and digital-only newsrooms get a piece of the public funding pie. Our conversation, lightly edited for length and clarity, is below.
Scire: How “first” is this position for LION? It’s the first time that someone has held the title of “associate director of policy and advocacy” but was there policy or advocacy work going on beforehand in some form?
Corra: There was some engagement with policy and advocacy before my position was created that other members of the LION team were playing point on, but this is the first time that LION dedicated significant resources to doing policy and advocacy work.
Culpepper: What is your job? How would you describe what you’re doing, in particular, to a LION member?
Corra: My job is to advocate on behalf of the interests of our members on matters of public policy. I will track and monitor legislation and regulatory proposals at the state and federal level that could have an impact on our members and their ability to operate their newsrooms successfully.
I’ll also work closely with partner organizations and coalitions on policy that we determine is of importance to our membership and educate/inform lawmakers and partner organizations of how different policy will impact local independent online newsrooms. Additionally, I will work to develop a regular communication cadence with our membership to keep them informed of the changing policy landscape, how it will impact them, and what they can do to get involved in shaping the outcome.
Scire: There are a number of other organizations with interests that seem to intersect with this kind of policy and advocacy work. I’m thinking of
the many news industry associations, press freedom nonprofits, policy advocates like
Rebuild Local News, and
media trade associations.
Who am I missing? What will collaboration look like? Could you give us a couple of specific examples of complementary policy goals?
Corra: Definitely groups like Rebuild Local News and
Free Press are ones that we’ve worked with in the past and ones we hope to work with in the future. I don’t want to single out specific groups because I think that there are several where we could be aligned on a number of issues in the journalism and press freedom policy spaces. I’m also interested in branching out beyond those areas to groups and coalitions that focus on supporting the interests of small businesses and entrepreneurship — two things that are core to what LION supports.
To the question of what collaboration looks like: advocacy work is often accomplished by group effort. Most of the important work is done through coalitions and collective action, so my hope is to have LION take an active role in coalitions where we find alignment and have our policy priorities be a part of those efforts.
Culpepper: The breadth of your role — keeping up with the minutia of policy developments across 50 states and the national level — strikes me as daunting, and a lot for one person. The announcement notes you’ll especially focus on “states likely to introduce legislation in 2025.” How are you planning to approach balancing, or prioritizing, work across so many different policy environments?
Corra: I think we have to focus on where we can have the greatest impact. I plan to prioritize legislation based on a number of factors including to what degree it materially affects our members, how likely a bill is to move forward in the legislative process, and what value our voice as an organization can bring to the table.
Scire: What kinds of previous experience — personal, professional, educational, etc. — would you say led you to this role, specifically? The announcement mentions you took a special interest in First Amendment law as a student at Michigan State University. Have you ever worked in journalism?
Corra: I haven’t worked as a journalist specifically, but I’ve always felt drawn to journalism as a way of storytelling and truth-telling. I taught First Amendment law to high school students as part of a legal clinic during law school (we taught in pairs, and that’s actually how I met my now-wife, Kristen). Learning the intricacies of the First Amendment heightened my interest in it, and I’ve always felt that journalists have an extremely important role in upholding the principles of 1A.
Beyond this, my professional background includes policy, public affairs, and grassroots advocacy work spanning across issue areas including immigration reform, renewable energy, climate resiliency, and civics education advocacy. I’m from Appalachia and have worked primarily in Tennessee and other southern states.
Scire: Now that’s a meetcute. We’ve seen several legislative attempts to boost local news —
some more successful than others — and the press release announcing your hiring mentions helping LION members “take advantage of tax breaks and other policy benefits.” The release also notes, though, there’s been “a rise in legislation [that] could have a chilling effect” on local newsrooms. Do you anticipate spending more time on defense than offense in your first year on the job?
Corra: I’m prepared for both scenarios, but it will largely depend on what we see being proposed by state lawmakers in the coming weeks as the legislative season fully takes off. I want to position LION to have a seat at the table shaping policy outcomes proactively, while knowing that there could be situations where we end up playing more of a defensive role depending on what trends we’re seeing throughout the country.
Culpepper: You mentioned state lawmakers. I think many people assume the prospects for federal legislation that’ll boost local news or extend press protections are not great following the 2024 election. Do you think legislation that would support LION members is possible on the national level under a Trump presidency and Republican-controlled Congress?
And, specifically, how much of a policy priority is legal protection for newsrooms in the context of a rise in SLAPP lawsuits? Are there specific protections you think are realistic and worth pursuing?
Corra: I don’t want to write-off anything as it’s still very early in the new administration. That being said, I haven’t seen a lot that makes me feel particularly optimistic about there being federal legislation that supports or boosts local news, or that offers enhanced protections for the press. The current congress is very divided — with extremely slim GOP majorities — so we are likely to see more legislative gridlock at least until the 2026 midterms.
The rise in SLAPP lawsuits is very concerning. I’m hesitant to opine on what’s realistic legislatively at this point, however I think anything that strengthens protections for newsrooms is worth at least looking into and dedicating some time to pursuing.
Culpepper: LION is a pretty big tent, counting among its 500+ members both nonprofits and for-profits of different sizes and stages of development. I imagine you may, fairly quickly, run into policy efforts that would help some members and leave out others. (I’m thinking about legislation passed last year in New York State that
left out nonprofits.)
How will you approach the challenge of advocating for all LION members?
Corra: My focus will be on policy that moves the ball forward for the most members possible, and part of that is being an active player in this policy space. I want LION to have a voice in important policy conversations as legislation is being developed because it will allow us to make the best possible case for outcomes that are most beneficial to our members.
Culpepper: How are you thinking about specifically supporting LION’s nonprofit members, given the limits to political activity that come with that tax status?
Corra: Can you clarify? LION is a nonprofit, so we’re subject to the same rules as our nonprofit members.
Culpepper: Of course. Chris [Krewson]’s comment that “the bigger hurdle will be activating nonprofit publishers” made me specifically curious about whether you might be thinking about supporting or guiding LION’s nonprofit members in different ways than for-profit members (even with LION being a nonprofit subject to the same
restrictions nonprofit members might be nervous about!).
In fact, maybe that’s part of the answer – that you and LION will be specifically well-equipped to guide nonprofit members precisely because LION is complying with the same restrictions in its own activity.
Corra: Part of my role is to help guide LION’s members on how to engage with lawmakers in appropriate ways. The role of advocacy is to educate and inform, so helping LION’s nonprofit members feel empowered to do that where appropriate will be a key part of what I do.
Culpepper: While the American government has some
history of subsidizing local news, many journalists are wary of any entanglement with government funding, and risks of perceived or real conflicts of interest.
Is it your sense that LION members are starting from the premise that there is a need for, essentially, a LION lobbyist to advocate for policies that support all members — or do you think you’ll have to win some members over who might harbor hesitation about getting involved in policy sausage-making?
Corra: I don’t want to speak on behalf of members this early in my role, but my sense is that they want to know that LION is advocating on their behalf in the interests of helping them build a sustainable news organization.
I don’t expect to be given the trust and support of our members without earning it, so my goal is to demonstrate to members the importance of having LION represented in these important policy matters that are already taking place. If policy is being crafted that impacts our members, I think it’s important that we are making efforts to help shape it to their benefit. The sausage-making is going to happen whether we choose to be a part of it or not.
Culpepper: Thinking internationally, are there any policies that are already on your radar that you might like to see emulated in or adapted to the U.S. to support LION newsrooms?
Corra: My focus since taking on this role has been entirely on policy in the states and federally, so I haven’t done a full enough review yet of international policies that we’d like to see adopted here. I think given how much legislation has the potential to significantly impact our members right in the states and in Congress, my focus will be on that until we reach the state legislative off-season (around April/May).
Scire: In this series, we’ve featured several people who’ve been hired to spearhead change in a news industry where old habits can die hard. LION itself is not a newsroom, of course, but I’m wondering if you can reflect on being “the first-ever” in an organization. What are some of the challenges? The opportunities?
Corra: I’ve worked for small and large companies where I’ve been the first person to assume certain roles, and one of the challenges is that you don’t have a predecessor to learn from or as much institutional knowledge to gain like you would in a more established role.
I am grateful for the opportunity because it means I can shape this role in my vision and leverage my experience and creativity to create something really unique and impactful. The local independent news industry needs strong advocates in spaces that they have not traditionally had, so the opportunity to be a creative advocate in that space is really exciting to me.
Photo of California State Capitol by
Josh Hild.
