Policy veteran Chuck Corra joins LION Publishers as our first-ever Associate Director of Policy & Advocacy

At last year’s Independent News Sustainability Summit, attendees told us they need help navigating the ever-changing and complex policy landscape. In fact, throughout 2024, we witnessed a rise in legislation, like California’s H.R. 9495, which could have a chilling effect on our members’ essential efforts to keep their communities safe and informed. 

Here at LION, our mission is to help independent news entrepreneurs build more sustainable businesses, and an important part of how we can do that is by guiding them on external policy factors and joining their voices together to influence future legislative efforts. 

That’s why we’re so excited to welcome Chuck Corra, a veteran of policy and advocacy campaigns in multiple states, to the team as our first-ever associate director of policy & advocacy. In this role, Chuck will design and lead advocacy efforts on behalf of local independent online news businesses and help LION drive policy outcomes at the state and national levels across the United States. 

Among other things, in this role, he will: 

• Research, track, and share information on policy developments (especially in states likely to introduce legislation in 2025)
• Build relationships with key legislators’ offices to amplify our members’ voices

• Organize calls to action for relevant stakeholders
• Lead collaboration with industry groups and organizations with complementary policy goals, and 
• Inform LION members on how to take advantage of tax breaks and other policy benefits made available through recent legislation

Although Chuck’s focus will primarily be on U.S. legislation this year, LION continues to engage with stakeholders and members in Canada about policy changes that are impacting independent publishing. 

Chuck is a native West Virginian whose professional background spans public affairs, issue advocacy, strategic research, and legal fields. While in law school at Michigan State University, he taught First Amendment Law as a student clinician with the Great Lakes First Amendment Clinic. This experience cemented his strong belief in protecting and upholding our First Amendment rights, especially when they are under attack. 

Before joining LION, he advised renewable energy developers on navigating community support for deploying wind and solar in rural communities. Prior to this, he worked on the national policy team of a large non-profit focusing on government affairs and advocacy work in civics education across 17 states. He also spent five years in Nashville, Tennessee, working on political and issue advocacy campaigns throughout the entire state on issues including clean energy, immigration, and conservation.

Chuck currently lives in North Central Florida with his wife, Kristen. You can connect with him at chuckcorra@lionpublishers.com.