Facebook is planning to invest 300 million dollars in the next three years to help local news globally. The step by the social media giant is taken at a time when it is facing criticism over its role in the erosion of the quality of news business across the world. The investment will be in the form of time and money and is considered a significant expansion on the part of Facebook to help newsrooms not only in the US but also across the world, to create and sustain viable business models to survive.

Facebook has also made it clear that unlike its earlier investments in the news business, the new plan is not tied to Facebook related products. Earlier rounds of investments are designed to encourage the news publishers to rely on delivering its products in the form of content over Facebook.

Campbell Brown, Facebook’s vice president of Global News Partnerships said in a statement, “We’re going to continue fighting fake news, misinformation, and low quality news on Facebook. But we also have an opportunity, and a responsibility, to help local news organizations grow and thrive”. Critics have in the past has slammed Facebook for acting as the platform for hate speech, misinformation and political meddling.

The first round of investments, which are scheduled to take place in the US is going to focus on resources which include local reporting, research on how to use technology and to improve the way of news gathering and create new products including recruitment of “trainee community journalists” and place them in local newsrooms. A fund created in the model of the Peace Corp, is going to help in placing 1,000 journalists in the local newsrooms in the next five years.

So far the recipients of Facebook’s investments are the Pulitzer Center, Knight-Lenfest Local News Transformation Fund, Report for America, the Local Media Association, Local Media Consortium, the American Journalism Project and the Community News Project.

Fran Wills, CEO of the Local Media Consortium, which is a group of 80 news companies, which represents 2,200 outlets, said Facebook is helping the group create a branded content program, which is aimed at attracting new advertisers.

Fran Wills said, “Facebook is making this investment to help support local media companies open up new revenue streams that will support local journalism”. Wills also added, “It’s in their best interest to have as much credible content as they can have on their platform and that’s a direct benefit to consumers”.

