The traditionally adversarial relationship between the press and government doesn't get much more fraught than it is now with Donald Trump in the White House.

But it could get worse: The Commerce Department soon could levy duties on imports of Canadian newsprint, warns David Chavern, CEO of the News Media Alliance.

In a letter to members last month, Chavern said the trade case now under consideration by Commerce was brought by one paper mill in Washington state, which seeks import fees as high as 50 percent.

"If implemented, this will result in a disrupted newsprint market and steep increases in the price of newsprint, which would cause small newspapers—already operating under thin margins—to hemorrhage revenue at the worst possible time," Chavern wrote.

"If these duties go through, newspapers may have to reduce the number of days they deliver printed newspapers; be forced to raise subscriptions prices (which will likely cause readers to switch from print to digital); or they may be forced to shut down operations altogether. All three scenarios would accelerate the decline of the newsprint market and most likely result in the loss of thousands of jobs in both the paper manufacturing and publishing industries," he wrote.

Chavern noted that more than 1,100 newspapers signed a letter asking Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross to scrutinize the mill's petition.

"As the case moves forward in the coming months, I encourage you to add your voice to theirs, calling out this gross misappropriation of trade laws and highlighting what it would mean to your community if access to your local newspaper were diminished or eliminated," he wrote.

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