Newsom pledges $20M to extend local news program two years, Google to match
Gov. Gavin Newsom just announced a $20 million boost to the California Civic Media Program, which is designed to fund the state’s local news ecosystem. Individual newsrooms are eligible for up to $250,000 and applications for the grant are open until noon on Aug. 21.
“Every Californian deserves access to accurate, trusted information. By investing in local newsrooms, California is bolstering the journalism that keeps communities across the state informed, connected and engaged,” Newsom said.
The California Civic Media Program emerged from the California Journalism Preservation Act, authored by Assemblymember Buffy Wicks, D-Oakland, which requires major tech platforms like Google and Meta to subsidize the local news outlets they often pull content from. Google lobbied state lawmakers to drop two proposals that would require the tech giant to pay journalists directly to use their content, so the partnership with Newsom emerged as a compromise.
The program announced $250 million in public and private funding to California newsrooms in 2024, which would be rolled out over the course of five years. The two-year extension which was announced on Tuesday will constitute an additional $20 million in grant money. There was also money set aside to launch a “national AI accelerator.”
Newsom trimmed California’s initial commitment to local newsrooms in the program’s first year from $100 million, with $55 million coming from Google, to $10 million, from the state and Google each, in response to budgetary constraints. A month later, Congress moved to make major cuts to California’s public media stations.
The Sacramento Bee and McClatchy Media’s four other California news organizations are in the process of applying for funds through the program, said Chris Fusco, McClatchy’s California region editor.
This story was originally published July 14, 2026 at 1:25 PM.
