Lecture 3 - Economics & Politics of Media
Industries
How do economic and political forces influence the media industries?
1. The importance of the broader social environment in which media operate.
2. The for-profit nature of most mass media shapes decision making.
3. One key dynamic in media regulation is the debate between 'free market' advocates versus those
who advocate regulating in the 'public interest'.
1. Patterns of ownership: trends
The tension between 'commerce' and 'creativity' in the media industries.
1. What kind of actors have an economic investment in the media?
2. And why does this matter?
Concentration of ownership --> fewer corporations own the media
Conglomeration --> media companies have become part of much larger corporations, which own a
collection of other companies
Vertical integration --> concentration of all aspects of production and distribution for a single type of
media product.
Horizontal integration --> concentrating ownership across differing types of media.
Industries
How do economic and political forces influence the media industries?
1. The importance of the broader social environment in which media operate.
2. The for-profit nature of most mass media shapes decision making.
3. One key dynamic in media regulation is the debate between 'free market' advocates versus those
who advocate regulating in the 'public interest'.
1. Patterns of ownership: trends
The tension between 'commerce' and 'creativity' in the media industries.
1. What kind of actors have an economic investment in the media?
2. And why does this matter?
Concentration of ownership --> fewer corporations own the media
Conglomeration --> media companies have become part of much larger corporations, which own a
collection of other companies
Vertical integration --> concentration of all aspects of production and distribution for a single type of
media product.
Horizontal integration --> concentrating ownership across differing types of media.
