Google Journalism Program Gets Skipped in California Budget (1)

Jan. 9, 2026, 9:03 PM UTCUpdated: Jan. 9, 2026, 11:35 PM UTC

California Gov. Gavin Newsom doesn’t plan to commit funding this year to a partnership with Google to help local newsrooms, state Department of Finance Director Joe Stephenshaw said Friday.

Stephenshaw said instead that “the money in the current budget is maintained, and that’s a program that’s still being currently stood up.” He was referring to the $10 million already approved for first-year funding of the program.

The $10 million was already less than the $30 million Newsom (D) originally promised. The lack of new funding in Newsom’s budget proposal this year indicates a delay in the implementation of a key ...

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