4.2 Ownership and Control of the Media Flashcards
What is ‘concentration of ownership’?
When only a few individual companies own the majority of mass media
Which sociologist investigated concentration of ownership? + examples
BAGDIKIAN
- 1983 -50 corporations owned the majority of news media in the US
1992 - 22 companies owned 90% of US mass media
If USA’s media was owned by individuals, there would be 25 000
Instead, by 2014, media ownership in the US concentrated in six corporations
What are the six main companies that control the US media?
Comcast, Disney, 21st century Fox/News Corporation, Time Warner, Viacom and CBS Corporation –> they also now buy/ control most of the internet providers
What does Curran argue?
concentration of ownership can be seen in the British newspaper industry
- 1937 - 4 men Lords Beaverbrook, Rothermere, Camrose and Northcliffe owned nearly one in every 2 national and local papers
2015 - similar - 7 individuals dominate the ownership of UK daily newspapers
Who are the 5 main owners of British daily newspapers in the UK?
NEWS CORP (Rupert Murdoch) - The Sun + The Times
DMG (Lord Rothermere) - Daily Mail, Metro +54 regional newspapers
NORTHERN + SHELL ( Richard Desmond) Daily Express, OK! etc
LEBEDEV + SON - Independent and i
TELGRAPH GROUP ( Barclay Brothers) - The Telegraph
Which 2 UK newspaper brands are owned by companies rather than individuals?
TRINITY MIRROR - Daily Mirror etc + over 150 regional newspapers
GUARDIAN MEDIA GROUP - controlled by the Scott Trust
How can concentration of ownership be seen in broadcasting media UK?
- ITV PLC owns 12 of the 15 regional commercial tv franchises
- Channel 5 is owned by Richard Desmond
- Satellite, cable and digitial tv mainly owned by 3 companies ( Sky - Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp owns 39% of shares , Virgin Media and BT
What is horizontal integration?
cross-media ownership –> bigger media companies own a range of media outlets eg NewsCorp own Harper Collins and also the biggest Asian Satellite Channel, Star TV,
What is an A03 example of horizontal integration?
Facebook buying/ owning Instagram and Whatsapp
What is vertical integration?
When media multinationals try and control all aspects of the production process - eg TIMES NEWS makes own films and distributes them to their own cinema complexes –> they have greater economic control over their operating environment
OTHER EXAMPLES - Netflix and Disney
What is lateral expansion?
- When media companies diversify into - eg Virgin group - has music, film production etc - however, it equally has insurance, banking , airlines etc.
Why do companies undergo lateral expansion?
to spread economic risk - losses in one area may be compensated for profits in another area
What is global conglomeration?
- due to globalisation
- Media companies like Sony and Samsung have bought media companies outside their countries of origin –> globalisation has increased and opened new international markets –> meant that concentration of ownership has now become global - eg NewCorp owns loads in Asia, Europe and North America
What is synergy?
When media transnationals package the same product eg a film in many different ways - eg soundtrack album, computer game, toys etc - eg hype around Frozen
What is technological convergence?
Putting several technologies into one media delivery system eg phone, laptop –> has also caused concentration of media ownership –> Companies like Samsung are also working hard to bring about greater technological convergence - making their apps and games more accessible to a global audience
What does Doyle argue?
Media ownership and control needs to be studied because societies need a diverse media provision so all voices can be heard –> otherwise, concentration of media ownership can cause abuses of power
Who do pluralists argue are in control of the media production?
Readers, viewers ( the audience) - exercise consumer sovereignty ( have free choice) so companies have to compete for their attention, otherwise they would go out of business
Why do pluralists think there is no global domination in the media?
All media markets are different - eg phone market compared to media market –> lots of variety, which means there cannot be any domination of any one media group
What is an example that can back the pluralists’ view of the mass media?
The failure of Blackberry - did not innovate and update its features eg a touchscreen –> Apple and Samsung overtook them
This shows how power is in the consumer
Why do pluralists think there is a concentration of media ownership too?
Th ere is a concentration of media ownership for economic reasons – media products are costly to produce –> therefore companies want to maximise audience size to maximise revenue
By using processes like vertical integration , companies are simply cutting costs with competing companies
Do pluralists think that owners have a big say in the media?
No - eg Rupert Murdoch - probably doesn’t have the time to go through all of his newspapers
WHALE: ‘ media owners have global problems of trade and investment to occupy thier minds’
What does it mean by pluralists seeing the media as a democratic ‘ mirror’?
- All points of view in society are catered for in the media –> this means that the media simply mirrors audience’s viewpoints
Who take up a large number of shares according to pluralists?
BBC ( public service broadcasters ) - has to be impartial
set up in 1926 - has a legal duty to ‘inform, educate and entertain’ the ‘full audience spectrum’ - has to be impartial
What is a weakness of this impartiality argument however?
BBC is abandoning those aims due to the rise of commercial TV –> has led to the BBC becoming more populist eg STRICTLY COME DANCING’ or the introduction of BBC iplayer - simply shows they are trying to live up to competition
a03 EXAMPLE FOR THE DEREGULATION OF MEDIA REGULATIONS
News of the World ‘ phone hacking’ scandal
- hacked voicemails of celebrities
- One of these people, Andy Coulson became PM spin doctor (to make gov look good)
- David Beckham’s affiar was revealed
How can the state control media ownership according to pluralists?
some countries - one person can’t own too many media channels - in the US, huge film companies can’t own film production etc.
How else can the state control media ownership?
Some TV channels have legal requirements on them - eg Ofcom, which investigates complaints etc
What do pluralists think about media professionalism?
Journalists and editors wouldn’t let a company to compromise their independence - have too much integrity
The media also tend to dabble in investigative journalism and will fight those in power - eg Washington Post, 1972 Watergate scandal , Nixon unfair to opponent, resigned
What is Curran’s critique towards the Pluralist theory?
- there is still evidence to suggest that media owners have power in subtle ways - eg choosing editors they want
Journalists also self-censor their work to prevent controversial views that could draw the owner’s attention
Another critique of pluralist theory:
- focus too much on the impartiality of journalists
BLUMLER AND GUREVITCH - many journalists over-reliant on official sources eg politicians’ reports - undermines journalists’ subjectivity
A third critique of pluralist theory:
TROWLER
500 journalists went with British and American soldiers - led to one-sided reporting as the journalists felt close to the people they lived with
How do feminists critique pluralism theory?
not many female voices available
Media Representations of women are usually focused on objectification, domesticity or motherhood
THORNAM - little room for any other theories - leads the feminist theory to be seen as extreme
Ordinary people critique:
- media may be someone’s only source of information - can’t communicate their own view so don’t have access to a wide range of media
What is an A03 example of the pluralists’ views? (how public demand control the media)
Philip Schofield Case, Andrew Tate –. celebrity scandal, gossip etc.
How do marxists think ideology plays a role in society?
Marxists use cultural power to dominate certain institutions eg education, media - these transmit ruling-class ideology which helps to justify inequalities in income - those who fail are believed to make it seem as though it is their fault
THIS LEADS TO A FALSE CLASS-CONSCIOUSNESS - w/c can’t see that they’re being exploited
A03 Example of media ownership
Rupert Murdoch - owns the Sun, etc. - conservative - friends with the Conservative politicians –> his newspapers ridicule opposition leaders
eg ‘ Save our bacon’ incident with Ed Miliband - mocking him and his views
What does Miliband argue regarding the mass media?
The media acts as an ideological instrument, justifies social inequality - makes ‘ruling-class’ ideology seem ‘fact’
The media don’t inform the public on why people are poor for example
What do Castles and Kossack argue regarding the mass media?
Ethnic minorities are more likely to be seen as criminals - suits the capitalist idea - this is because it distracts people from the real reason behind inequality ( the captialist system)
What else do marxists argue regarding the media?
People in society only get a small selection of ‘approved news’
‘Alternative’ views are described as extremist and are therefore ignored
The media help distract people from the real causes of poverty for example, so people are happy - Marcuse
A03 Example of how the media promotes consumerism and ‘false needs’
Kim Kardashian getting robbed by the Grandpa robbers - had showed off her material goods
Why can Marxists spread their ideology in media?
Media owners are capitalist - have an interest in not being criticised or they would lose on lots of profit
Why are governments no longer interested in controlling the media as much?
TUNSTALL AND PALMER
- the class interests of media owners and political elites often overlap
- has meant that certain newspapers will often favour a certain politician so that governments can’t enforce strict media regulation
Where else can the Marxist idea that media owners control content be seen?
ITALY
Silvio Berlusconi controlled 3 tv stations ( reached 40% of the Italian audience)
This helped his party massively in 1994 in winning the general election and Berlusconi becoming PM
What are Curran’s four distinct phases of the British Press which supports Marxist ideology?
1920-1950 - press barons like Lord Beaverbrook had open ideological intentions ‘ I run the Daily Express merely for the purpose of making propaganda and with no other motive’
1951-1974 - journalist editors were given greater autonomy - led them to investigative journalism of abuses of power etc but owners still showed support to political parties
1974-1992 - newspapers started shifting towards making profit as opposed to supporting parties - eg Murdoch ‘ businessman first’ - shifted newspapers to right wing because he thought it would make more money
1997 - move to ‘global conservatism’ - British newspapers have moved to the global marketplace
How has Murdoch involved his newspapers into politics?
1979-1992 - strongly supported Margaret Thatcher’s government - pursued economic policies he agreed with ‘ phantom prime minister’
1997 - supported Blair because he was trying to lift controls on cross-media ownership - changed political loyalty
What are some critiques of the Marxist theory towards the mass media?
- rarely explain how an owner’s manipulation works in practice
- only really focus on economical effects of media ownership and control - feminists argue they forget the patriarchal ideology that these owners spread too
-assume ruling-class ideology affects false-class consciousness - GRAMSCI - little evidence for this - w/c can see things for themselves - also ignore that many journalists see themselves as guardians of the public interest - will expose abusers of power
What is citizen journalism?
Through the growth of social media, the ruling- class are now more subject to more scrutiny from ordinary people
Curran’s critique of these Marxist views
Today, news owners are mainly motivated by profit rather than spreading a particular ideology
What is hegemony?
economic,social and cultural domination of one group over another
What does the Glasgow Univeristy Media Group suggest about hegemony in the media?
- supports the capitalist system not intentionally, but as an accidental by-product of the social backgrounds of journalists and researchers - usually white, middle class males
What is a key Sutton Trust statistic regarding journalists?
in 2006 and 2012 - over 50% of the top 100 journalists in the UK were educated at private schools ( which only educate 7% of the UK’s population)
A03 example of journalists for neo-marxists
Piers Morgan - usually spreads conservative ideas
What does the GUMG think about the white, middle-class journalists?
- they try to take a ‘middle-of - the - road’ approach so that their views aren’t seen as threatening so will appeal to the majority
Anyone outside this bracket will be seen as ‘extremist’ so are rarely seen in newspapers or on tv for example
Why does the GUMG think that the journalists take a ‘middle-of-the-road’ approach?
motivated by profit rather than spreading capitalist ideals
- Advertising companies are more attracted to media companies who align with their values
- they also don’t want to post anything too extreme to upset viewers and cause a profit loss
What is ‘agenda-setting’?
- the media decide which topics people will talk about in their daily lives - eg more likely to write about a celebrity than inequalities within the world
- this means people never really question how society works - leads to capitalist ideals being presented as ‘normal’
What does Jones argue regarding the media?
- sees media owners as part of the ‘Establishment’ - they have common economic interests and want to protect their status as dominant group within society
- Journalists should criticise the Establishment, but as they are part of it , they ignore it and focus on attacking the poor instead
What are some criticisims of the Neo- Marxist theories?
- GUMG focus too much on media professionals, implying that owner have little say in it - probably false
- Media mainly owned by men - doesn’t acknowledge that media setting is a patriarchal exercise which limits women’s role in the media
A03 example to support neo-marxism
Programmes like Dragon’s Den, Apprentice – promote cultural hegemony– promote big business etc (ruling class) - socialism is usually looked down upon in the media
A03 independent journalist
Joe Rogan - has a podcast etc.
What is postmodern society like?
- media - saturated
- affected by globalisation
- people no longer believe in absolute truths
- This means that people can’t get influenced by journalists etc.
Baudrillard’s view of the media:
Postmodernist
- much more media around –> has led to audiences having difficulty distinguishing between real life and media life - creates a ‘hyper-reality’
- means that media can be interpreted in many ways - is polysemic
- has distorted our view of the real world
AO3 examples of hyperreality:
Disney princesses + the idea of ‘fairytale love’
reality tv - presents a fake reality
beauty standards - what’s real and what isn’t -eg photoshop, filters etc
Therefore, what do postmodernists argue overall?
- the control of the media production is no longer just in the hands of the producers/ corporations –> individuals are now involved more eg blogging/vlogging
A03 examples to support postmodernism
Andrew Tate shaping identities
proto-communities - not real ones eg Taylor Swift and Swifties
Levene:
members of society now have greater choice and greater diversity of media - can now make their own decisions
Criticisms of postmodernist theory of the media:
- narratives quite vague - based on anecdotes rather than factual evidence
- ignore the fact that some powerless groups in society might have limited access to the media
- over exaggerate normal people’s impact in the media
