Last month the Federal Trade Commission published its staff discussion draft of potential policy recommendations to "support the reinvention of journalism." Those potential recommendations have been the subject of a fair amount of controversy throughout the industry.

Suffice it to say that not all of the recommendations have been incredibly popular. Today Google submitted its own comments on the document.

"We agree that the Internet has posed challenges as well as opportunities for publishers. Google works closely with publishers to find business solutions so journalism can thrive online, and we’re optimistic about the news industry’s future," says Google’s Director of Public Policy, Pablo Chavez. "But we strongly disagree with a number of policy recommendations set forth in the Staff Discussion Draft, such as the suggestion that Congress enact a federal hot news doctrine — something that would not only hurt free expression, but also the very profession of journalism that the proponents of hot news say they support."

"We appreciate the FTC’s involvement in this matter and its effort to shed light on how news publishers can move forward in the digital era, and we’re hopeful that our comments will help encourage policy makers to promote innovation and creativity rather than protectionist barriers," adds Chavez.

Here are Google’s comments to the FTC in their entirety:

Google is obviously a key player in the future of journalism. It will be interesting to see the reactions to the company’s comments. Tell us what you think.