Newspaper trade group spends $245K on 3Q lobbying

NEW YORK — The U.S. newspaper industry's largest trade group spent $245,241 during the third quarter to lobby the federal government on a range of issues involving journalism and the newspaper business, according to a quarterly disclosure report.

That was down 6 percent from the $260,000 the group spent in the second quarter and down 21 percent from the $310,000 it spent in last year's third quarter, according to disclosure reports the Newspaper Association of America filed with the House clerk's office.

The group lobbied Congress, the Labor Department and the U.S. Postal Service, among other federal agencies.

Issues included the First Amendment, the Freedom of Information Act and federal legal protections for reporters who do not want to reveal confidential sources. The group also participated in discussions at the Federal Trade Commission and the Federal Communications Commission on the role and survival of the media in the Internet age.

According to an Oct. 19 report, the group's other included consumer privacy, tracking Web surfers' online activity for advertising purposes, data security, copyright protection and the U.S. Postal Service.