Ownership & Control of Media MEDIA
Media is all about communication
• ‘the media’ includes all the different forms of
communication that society uses to give
SOCIOLOGISTS DISAGREE OVER WHAT COUNTS AS ‘MEDIA’ information to the public – like newspapers,
websites, radio, cinema, advertising and TV
• There’s some debate about what counts as media – for example, some theorists would include all mobile phone technology,
• Organisations who own these methods of
but others would only include it when I’s used to communicate to a large audience
communication are part of the media too
• Since the 1980s there have been huge changes in the media. There are now a lot more specialist media outlets communicating
• One of the main functions of the media is to
with smaller, niche groups rather than to the whole ‘mass’ of the public
deliver news to society. It is also used to
• Also, new media allow audiences to interact with media providers. Communication isn’t one way anymore. Some media are
education and inform the public, and to provide
more of a multi-way network e.g. the internet
entertainment
• Some theorists include a lot more things when they talk about ‘media’. MCLUHAN (1964) included any kind of technology that
helped people communicate – even cars and clocks
THE MEDIA OWNED BY A FEW POWERFUL COMPANIES AND MARXIST PERSPECTIVE
INDIVIDUALS
Traditional Marxism
The media is produced and transmitted by media outlets. The same companies • Media ownership control what we see in the media
often own different forms of media – this is cross-media ownership. It’s often not • Owners of the media exploit their power position to manipulate the content of
publicised the media
• Media companies diversify – they buy other companies that make different • Capitalist media owners tell news editors what stories to cover and what views to
kinds of media, and they also buy companies in other business sectors put across
Ø Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp owns TV stations, newspapers, book and • MILIBAND (1969) said that these messages encourage the proletariat to be
magazine publishers and websites
subordinate and happy to serve the bourgeoisie
Ø In Italy Silvio Berlusconi owns 3 national TV channels, an advertising agency
and a magazine publisher, he part owns a banking company and a cinema Neo Marxism
film, and owns AC Milan • Media reflect the ideas of the ruling class (including media owners)
• Some media companies own media in several different countries – News Corp • It says that control over the media is indirect
owns newspapers in Australia Britain and the USA, and TV networks in • The world view of the elite class is broadcast and reinforced by the media
Australia, Europe, Asia, North and South America • The values and ideas of the ruling class are presented as the natural, common-
• Over the last 30 years, media ownership has become concentrated into fewer sense views to have – this is called ‘cultural hegemony’ à one set of dominating
and fewer hands – research by BAGDIKIAN (2004) found that American media
over other ideas
was mostly owned by 5 huge corporations à Time Warner & Disney to name
a few
• Some believe that people who work for the media are trained to present a certain
• More recently, comcast and CBS have replaced Bertelsmann and joined the view of the world which becomes natural to them and the audience
four other companies – together they are known as the ‘Big Six’ and they own • They don’t say that alternate views are suppressed – they say they’re allowed.
90% of the US media This gives the impression that all views get a fair shout – which makes it seem fair
Ø The individuals who own and control these companies have huge power and for the dominant view to stay on top
influence in society. They can control the information we receive if they • THE FRANKFURT SCHOOL – argued that advertising in the media makes people
want to – e.g. Berlusconi was voted as PM for the third time in 2008 until
2011 as he controlled the reporting of his political party through the media
feel that they need the goods produced in the capitalist economy – ‘false needs’
he owned
Media is all about communication
• ‘the media’ includes all the different forms of
communication that society uses to give
SOCIOLOGISTS DISAGREE OVER WHAT COUNTS AS ‘MEDIA’ information to the public – like newspapers,
websites, radio, cinema, advertising and TV
• There’s some debate about what counts as media – for example, some theorists would include all mobile phone technology,
• Organisations who own these methods of
but others would only include it when I’s used to communicate to a large audience
communication are part of the media too
• Since the 1980s there have been huge changes in the media. There are now a lot more specialist media outlets communicating
• One of the main functions of the media is to
with smaller, niche groups rather than to the whole ‘mass’ of the public
deliver news to society. It is also used to
• Also, new media allow audiences to interact with media providers. Communication isn’t one way anymore. Some media are
education and inform the public, and to provide
more of a multi-way network e.g. the internet
entertainment
• Some theorists include a lot more things when they talk about ‘media’. MCLUHAN (1964) included any kind of technology that
helped people communicate – even cars and clocks
THE MEDIA OWNED BY A FEW POWERFUL COMPANIES AND MARXIST PERSPECTIVE
INDIVIDUALS
Traditional Marxism
The media is produced and transmitted by media outlets. The same companies • Media ownership control what we see in the media
often own different forms of media – this is cross-media ownership. It’s often not • Owners of the media exploit their power position to manipulate the content of
publicised the media
• Media companies diversify – they buy other companies that make different • Capitalist media owners tell news editors what stories to cover and what views to
kinds of media, and they also buy companies in other business sectors put across
Ø Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp owns TV stations, newspapers, book and • MILIBAND (1969) said that these messages encourage the proletariat to be
magazine publishers and websites
subordinate and happy to serve the bourgeoisie
Ø In Italy Silvio Berlusconi owns 3 national TV channels, an advertising agency
and a magazine publisher, he part owns a banking company and a cinema Neo Marxism
film, and owns AC Milan • Media reflect the ideas of the ruling class (including media owners)
• Some media companies own media in several different countries – News Corp • It says that control over the media is indirect
owns newspapers in Australia Britain and the USA, and TV networks in • The world view of the elite class is broadcast and reinforced by the media
Australia, Europe, Asia, North and South America • The values and ideas of the ruling class are presented as the natural, common-
• Over the last 30 years, media ownership has become concentrated into fewer sense views to have – this is called ‘cultural hegemony’ à one set of dominating
and fewer hands – research by BAGDIKIAN (2004) found that American media
over other ideas
was mostly owned by 5 huge corporations à Time Warner & Disney to name
a few
• Some believe that people who work for the media are trained to present a certain
• More recently, comcast and CBS have replaced Bertelsmann and joined the view of the world which becomes natural to them and the audience
four other companies – together they are known as the ‘Big Six’ and they own • They don’t say that alternate views are suppressed – they say they’re allowed.
90% of the US media This gives the impression that all views get a fair shout – which makes it seem fair
Ø The individuals who own and control these companies have huge power and for the dominant view to stay on top
influence in society. They can control the information we receive if they • THE FRANKFURT SCHOOL – argued that advertising in the media makes people
want to – e.g. Berlusconi was voted as PM for the third time in 2008 until
2011 as he controlled the reporting of his political party through the media
feel that they need the goods produced in the capitalist economy – ‘false needs’
he owned
