Issue Area: Corporate Ownership
Almost all media that reach a large audience in the United States are owned by for-profit corporations--institutions that by law are obligated to put the profits of their investors ahead of all other considerations. The goal of maximizing profits is often in conflict with the practice of responsible journalism.Not only are most major media owned by corporations, these companies are becoming larger and fewer in number as the biggest ones absorb their rivals. This concentration of ownership tends to reduce the diversity of media voices and puts great power in the hands of a few companies. As news outlets fall into the hands of large conglomerates with holdings in many industries, conflicts of interest inevitably interfere with newsgathering.
FAIR believes that independent media are essential to a democratic society, and that aggressive antitrust action must be taken to break up monopolistic media conglomerates. At the same time, non-corporate, alternative media outlets need to be promoted by both the government and the non-profit sector.
Next in What's Wrong with the News?: Advertiser Influence
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Less...
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FCC Moves to Lift Cross-Ownership Ban (10/26/01)
FCC Moves to Intensify Media Consolidation (4/20/01)
The Commercialization of Children's Public Television (3/15/00)
The Commercialization of Children's Public Television (3/15/00)
AOL-Time Warner:: Dawn of a Golden Age, or a Blow to Media Diversity? (1/13/00)
FCC Weakens Rules, to Delight of Broadcasters (8/9/99)
NEW STUDY:: Public TV More Corporate, Less Public Than Ever (6/28/99)
The Cost of Survival: Political Discourse and the "New PBS" (6/1/99) By
CIA Report Gets New Media Attention (11/3/98)
Interlocking Directorates of large media companies
