Originally Posted by Libertine

Not a dude in the Dutch parliament, but instead a commission created to analyze the future of the newspaper industry.

And since the minister of education, culture and science has already stated that he considers it an extremely bad idea, it's not going to happen.

Of course, the concern about newspapers disappearing is actually a valid one. While websites also deliver news, they very often stick to stories from the big news agencies (AP, Reuters, ANP, etc.) and do very little investigative journalism themselves.

Since news agencies tend to provide only small stories with little depth and criticism, there is a very real danger that the disappearance of newspapers will stifle public debate and prevent politicians and such from getting called out on bad behavior. Because let's face it - when a politician abuses his power, a newspaper like NRC is rather more likely to expose his actions than a website like Nu.nl.

Of course, that doesn't mean this proposal is a good one. It's not. Government funding for the media makes the media less independent, which is the last thing we should want.