1

Media Conglomerates

 A conglomerate is a large company composed of a number of smaller companies or

subsidiaries and hence there is concentration of ownership.

 Concentration of media ownership (also known as media consolidation or media

convergence) is a process whereby progressively fewer individuals or organizations
control increasing shares of the mass media. Contemporary research demonstrates
increasing levels of consolidation, with many media industries already highly
concentrated and dominated by a very small number of firms.

 Successful media companies usually buy out or merge with other companies to make
them more powerful, profitable, and able to reach a larger viewing audience, making
media ownership more concentrated.

 Over time the amount of media merging has increased and the amount of media
outlets have increased. That translates to fewer companies owning more media outlets,
increasing the concentration of ownership. In 1983, 90% of US media was controlled by
fifty companies; today, 90% is controlled by just six companies.

The "Big Six"

The Big Six  Media Outlets 

 NBC Universal (a joint venture with General Electric from 2011
to 2013), NBC and Telemundo, Universal Pictures, Focus
Features, 26 television stations in the United States and cable
networks USA Network, Bravo, CNBC, The Weather
Comcast 
Channel, MSNBC, Syfy, NBCSN, Golf Channel, Esquire
Network, E!, Cloo, Chiller, Universal HD and the Comcast
SportsNet regional system. Comcast also owns the Philadelphia
Flyers through a separate subsidiary.
 Holdings include: ABC Television Network, cable
networks ESPN, the Disney Channel, A&E and Lifetime,
approximately 30 radio stations, music, video game, and book
publishing companies, production
The Walt companies Touchstone, Marvel Entertainment, Lucasfilm, Walt
Disney Disney Pictures, Pixar Animation Studios, the cellular 
Company service Disney Mobile, Disney Consumer Products and
Interactive Media, and theme parks in several countries. Also
has a longstanding partnership with Hearst Corporation, which
owns additional TV stations, newspapers, magazines, and
stakes in several Disney television ventures.
News  Holdings include: the Fox Broadcasting Company; Fox Sports, 
Corporation* cable networks Fox News Channel, Fox Business
Network, National Geographic Channel, Nat Geo
Wild, FX, FXX, FX Movie Channel, and the regional Fox Sports
Networks; print publications including the Wall Street
Journal and the New York Post; the
 2

magazines Barron's and SmartMoney; book

publisher HarperCollins; film production companies 20th Century
Fox, Fox Searchlight Pictures and Blue Sky Studios. As of July
2013, News Corporation was split into two separate companies,
with publishing assets and Australian media assets going
to News Corp, and broadcasting and media assets going to 21st
Century Fox. However, Rupert Murdoch remains involved in
both.[78]
 Formerly the largest media conglomerate in the world, with
holdings including: CNN, the CW (a joint
venture with CBS), HBO, Cinemax, Cartoon Network/Adult
Time Warner 
Swim, HLN, NBA TV, TBS, TNT, truTV, Turner Classic
Movies, Warner Bros., Castle Rock, DC Comics, Warner Bros.
Interactive Entertainment, and New Line Cinema.
 Holdings include: MTV, Nickelodeon/Nick at
Viacom Nite, VH1, BET, Comedy Central, Paramount Pictures, 
and Paramount Home Entertainment.
 Holdings include: CBS Television Network and the CW (a joint
venture with Time Warner), cable networks CBS Sports
CBS
Network, Showtime, TVGN; 30 television stations; CBS Radio, 
Corporation
Inc., which has 130 stations; CBS Television Studios; book
publisher Simon & Schuster.

 Recently the Fox channels have been bought over by Disney.

 Concentration of media ownership is also very frequently seen as a problem

of contemporary media and society leading to a number of undesirable consequences.
The negative effects that could come into play are lack of competition and diversity as
well as biased political views.

 Critics have accused the large media conglomerates of dominating the media and using
unfair practices.

 This can be seen in the news industry, where there is increasing commercialisation of
media. News corporations refuse to publicize information that would be harmful to their
interests. These practices also sensationalism at the expense of the coverage of serious
issues.

 Secondly there is also a tendency towards news manipulation where information is

moulded and projected to suit the interest of the owners.

 Commercially driven, mass media is primarily loyal to sponsors, i.e. advertisers and
government rather than to the public interest. Dissemination of news often caters to the
interests of the advertisers. Healthy, market-based competition is absent, leading to
slower innovation and increased prices.
 3

 Reporters have often seen their stories refused or edited beyond recognition. An
example would be the repeated refusal of networks to air "ads" from anti-war advocates
to liberal groups regardless of factual basis.

 Consequently, if the companies dominating a media market choose to suppress stories

that do not serve their interests, the public suffers, since they are not adequately
informed of some crucial issues that may affect them.

 There is also the concern that the concentration of media ownership reduces diversity in
both ownership and programming of TV shows and radio programs.

 The general view is that the media owners influence the content and structure of media
content. Healthy or balanced debates or discussions on an issue tend to get downplayed
and instead the view point convenient to the owners is put forth.

 It is evident that, the mainstream media supports the fundamental tenets of capitalism
such as private enterprise, the open market, profit etc. A small cluster of powerful owners
of media conglomerates, have power over what the populace reads, watches, and
hears, or cannot access in terms of information.

 They are also accused of being a leading force behind the standardization of culture and
are frequently criticized by groups that perceive news organizations as
being biased toward special interests.

 International conglomerates may on occasion have a dominant influence on culture,

mainly when they venture into countries that had previously been subjected to corrupt
media systems or had previously experienced considerable state suppression of mass
media. This however may popularise western culture at the cost of local cultural
practices or norms. [expand from cultural bias]

 Critics of media deregulation and the resulting concentration of ownership fear that such
trends will only continue to reduce the diversity of information provided. The ultimate
consequence, critics argue, is a poorly informed public, restricted to a reduced array of
media options that offer only information that does not harm the media conglomerate’s
growing range of interests.

 The net result is that free expression is in jeopardy not just deliberately by authoritarian
regimes but also by international media conglomerates that have constantly lessened
meaningful diversity in expression all over the globe

 One of the largest media conglomerates is The Walt Disney Company. Robert Iger, Walt
Disney Company's current CEO actively supports the Democrats. Secondly, Disney’s
ownership of ABC directly influences what television programs and news are produced.
For instance, ABC does not produce stories that show Disney sweat shops or child
laborers.

 News Corporation is an emerging media giant as well. This conglomerate owns, National
Geographic, the Wall Street Journal and New York Post. News Corporation's CEO,
Rupert Murdoch admits he is politically conservative which is evident by the reputation of
 4

Fox News for airing conservatively biased news programming, before Fox was bought
over by Disney.

 General Electric is a perfect example of how a corporation can drive media content. The
conglomerate owns 27 television stations and multiple cable networks. As the owners of
NBC, General Electric does not allow for reporting on the inadequacies of the company
and also doesn't allow any controversial stories regarding General Electric to be
produced.

 CBS Corporation not only owns multiple television and radio stations. CBS News
President David Rhodes’s brother Ben Rhodes was Obama's Deputy National Security
Adviser for Strategic Communication. This example shows there is a direct connection
between the CBS News President and the Obama Administration.

 Today, media conglomerates control the majority of media outlets production and
distribution and they exercise power and influence in multiple facets of operation and
content. It is clear that programming is now driven by profit and corporate influence.
When one entity controls the information, we must question the validity of the information
we receive. As media consumers we must sift through the information and question the
source.

######

Prepared by Mr. Shridhar Naik. For private circulation only.