• by Joe Mandese  @mp_joemandese, September 13, 2021

Throwing its considerable media-buying weight behind the support of American news media outlets, Havas Media Group this morning announced it has joined “Protect Our Press,” (POP) a national initiative for agencies, brands, publishers and individuals focused on preserving trusted local news.

To date, POP has announced support from the Association of National Advertisers (ANA), and the American Association of Advertising Agencies (4A’s), but only one other ad agency, explicitly: Boston-based Allen & Gerritsen.

Citing its own proprietary consumer research, “Meaningful Media In The Time Of COVID-19,” Havas Media Group said its data shows that consumers turn to “quality media as a source of truth, with local news service as the most trusted media source with growth in consumption among younger demographics.”

Despite this, Havas Media Group noted that newsrooms continue to experience declines in revenue -- including ad spending -- which has been contributing to newsroom layoffs.

“We’re proud to join Protect Our Press,” Havas Media Group North American Chief Investment Officer Amy Ginsberg, chief investment officer said in a statement announcing its involvement. “Local News embodies Meaningful Media in the most significant sense – trusted, engaging, and influential media which really matters to the community it serves. We hope more of our partners across the industry will join in this important initiative.” 

By joining the initiative, Havas Media Group explicitly pledged to: 

• Invest a meaningful percentage of its programmatic advertising spend to direct or collective news buys, including the removal of high quality, brand-safe news publishers from exclusion lists. 

• Evaluate direct deals with local newspapers through inclusion in the RFP process.

• Commit to maintaining support levels for media buys already invested in local journalism.

• Encourage individuals to sign up for paid subscriptions to their local digital or print publication.