Mount Isa City Council is calling on the federal government to develop a regional media policy to protect and support regional and local media.
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In an ordinary council meeting on July 22, Mayor Danielle Slade moved a motion in response to correspondence from the media union, the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance (MEAA), to join its "Our Communities, Our Stories" campaign, which is highlighting the important role regional Queensland media plays in covering local stories.
Cr Slade moved that the council "write to the Minister for Communications and Arts outlining the support for Our Communities, Our Stories campaign and urging the minister to develop a regional media policy to be delivered by the end of 2020".
This was seconded by Cr Mick Tully and carried by all councillors.
"I think I speak for a lot of people in the community, when I say how important local media is to a place like Mount Isa and the surrounding remote communities," Cr Slade said.
"I know that media is very important to Mount Isa and I think this is something as a council that we need to support."
The North West Star recently returned to publishing printed newspapers after production was temporarily suspended due to the economic impact of coronavirus control measures.
In response to COVID-19, the federal government announced a $50 million Public Interest News Gathering program to support public interest journalism delivered by commercial television, newspaper, and radio businesses in regional Australia.
But MEAA believes "more needs to be done".
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