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Subscription failed Subscribe for free Thank you for subscribing! 13 hours ago - TechnologyColumn / Tech Agenda The push for a "PBS for the internet" Kim Hart Photo illustration: Shoshana Gordon/Axios. Photos: Nathan Congleton/ NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images The concept of a new media ecosystem that's non-profit, publicly funded and tech-infused is drawing interest in policy circles as a way to shift the power dynamics in today's information wars. Why it matters: Revamping the structure and role of public media could be part of the solution to shoring up local media, decentralizing the distribution of quality news, and constraining Big Tech platforms' amplification of harmful or false information. Flashback: Congress in 1967 authorized federal operating money to broadcast stations through a new agency, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and what is now PBS launched down-the-middle national news programming and successful kids shows like "Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood" and "Sesame Street." NPR was born in 1971. * Despite dust-ups over political interference of national programming and funding, hundreds of local community broadcast stations primarily received grants directly to choose which national programs to support. Driving the news: A new policy paper from the German Marshall Fund proposes a full revamp of the CPB to fund not just broadcast stations, but a wide range of digital platforms and potential content producers including independent journalists, local governments, nonprofits and educational institutions. * The idea is to increase the diversity of local civic information, leaning on anchor institutions like libraries and colleges that communities trust. * Beyond content, the plan calls for open protocol standards and APIs to let consumers mix and match the content they want from a wide variety of sources, rather than being at the mercy of Facebook, Twitter or YouTube algorithms. * Data would be another crucial component. In order to operate, entities in the ecosystem would have to commit to basic data ethics and rules about how personal information is used. "It's about power. We don't want government to tell the platforms what to do, but we don't want the platforms to have the power to deplatform" and decide which voices get heard, said Ellen Goodman, co-author of the report, a professor at Rutgers Law School, and founder and director of the Rutgers Institute for Information Policy & Law. * "No one thinks the most efficient way to do things was to have a gazillion broadcast stations, but it was to decentralize power. So what would that look like on the internet?" Reality check: Allowing people to "tune" their own content preference dials could exacerbate filter bubbles. * Still, the authors say the involvement of local trusted institutions in the creation and amplification of civic information -- from public health updates to local election news -- could improve people's overall media diet and exposure "so it's not just a battle of government vs. platform," Goodman said. The big picture: More broadly, new models of non-profit media are gaining traction. * The Local Journalism Sustainability Act takes a different approach to the government grant model. The bill would, for example, give a tax credit to people who donate to nonprofit newsrooms, or to small businesses who buy advertising at a nonprofit outlet. What they're saying: "There absolutely has to be a much bigger role for nonprofit media, with public media as a subset of that, than there has been in the past," said Steve Waldman, CEO of Report for America. * While today's public media predominantly skews toward broadcasting, which requires licenses from the FCC, the modern version can use a variety of funding sources and digital tools that don't rely on the same rigid infrastructure. * "Right now a disproportionate amount of CPB money goes to TV," Waldman said. "From a local news point of view, we may need to loosen that up and have the money go to wherever it can strengthen local programming." In a 2020 article, Waldman also called for "thousands of mini-SPANs," by using streaming technologies to broadcast public meetings the way C-SPAN does for congressional hearings. Be smart: The debate over misinformation and disinformation is primarily focused on who gets to decide whether content is good or bad -- an unwinnable battle. * Revamping the underlying infrastructure that amplifies quality content -- drawing on trusted local institutions and independent content producers -- could give citizens a new source of news that doesn't rely solely on platform algorithms or polarized commercial outlets. Go deeper Jonathan Swan 2 hours ago - Politics & Policy Evictions lead to rare clash between the White House and Dems Demonstrators listen as Rep. Cori Bush, a Democrat from Missouri, right, speaks at the U.S. Capitol during a protest against the expiration of the eviction moratorium. Photo: Stefani Reynolds/ Bloomberg via Getty Images The White House and Democratic leaders have been dueling -- publicly and privately -- over who should take responsibility for extending an eviction moratorium that could protect millions of people on the verge of homelessness. Why it matters: It's a rare moment of dysfunction between the usually-in-lockstep Biden team and congressional leadership. Go deeper (3 min. read) Ivana Saric Updated 3 hours ago - Health Sen. Lindsey Graham tests positive for COVID-19 Lindsey Graham. Photo: Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said Monday that he has tested positive for COVID-19, despite being vaccinated. Why it matters: Graham emphasized that the mildness of his symptoms is due to being vaccinated. If he had been unvaccinated his symptoms would be "far worse," he said. Go deeper (1 min. read) Barak Ravid, author of from Tel Aviv Updated 4 hours ago - World U.S. consulting with U.K., Romania and Israel on response to alleged Iran attack Secretary of State Antony Blinken, President Biden and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin. Photo: Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images The British and Romanian governments summoned the Iranian ambassadors to London and Bucharest on Monday to protest last week's drone strike on an oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman, which both countries have attributed to Iran. The latest: U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a briefing Monday that the U.S. is consulting with the U.K., Romania and Israel to prepare a collective response to the alleged Iranian attack. Go deeper (1 min. read) Axios gets you smarter, faster with news & information that matters. 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