Editorial: Google antitrust suit highlights threat to the local free press

An antitrust suit that challenges Google’s dominance of online advertising offers hope for the survival of the local free press. Justice moves slowly, however, and in the meantime, Congress should take steps to help local news survive.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta this week joined the U.S. Justice Department and several other states in the lawsuit against Google. “Google has used anticompetitive, exclusionary, and unlawful means to eliminate or severely diminish any threat to its dominance over digital advertising technologies,” the suit alleges.

There’s no question that Google has a dominant position in online advertising. Only Facebook even comes close to matching its market share. Google uses its position to dictate terms to sites that sell advertising space, taking a hefty percentage of the revenue.

That’s had a huge impact on local newspapers. 

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