INDUSTRY OWNERSHIP- who owns the media?

Question 1

What are media conglomerates?

Answer 1

• Large companies that own multiple media outlets (newspapers,TV)
• Example= Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp owns The Times, The Sunday Times and The Sun.

Question 2

What impact do media conglomerates and corporate ownsership have?

Answer 2

1. Concentration of power in a few hands (oligopoly)
2. Risk of bias/ political influence due to the owners personal interests.
3. Cost-cutting measures to maximise profit.

Question 3

Define oligopoly?

Answer 3

• A state of limited competition,
• in which a market is shared by a small number of producers or sellers.

Question 4

What are Trust Ownserships?

Answer 4

• Non-profit newspapers owned by trusts. Meaning they don’t answer to shareholders and prioritize journalism over profit.
• EXAMPLE= The Guardian is owned by the Scott Trust (which reinvests profits into journalism)

Question 5

What are the impacts of Trust Ownership/ Non-profit models on media?

Answer 5

1. They have more editorial independence (less influenced by advertisers/ political pressure).
2. Still faces financial struggles in the digital age.

Question 6

Name 4 types of newspaper ownsership models?

Answer 6

1. Media Conglomerates
2. Trust Ownsership (Non-Profit Models)
3. State/ Public Ownsership
4. Independent & Crowdfunded Models

Question 7

What is State/ Public Ownership in the newspaper industry?

Answer 7

• Public ownsership= Newspapers that receive funding from public money or government support.
• Example= The BBC recieves funding from the license fee.

Question 8

What is the impact of state/ public ownsership?

Answer 8

1. Supposed to offer political neutral news (but accusations of bias exist)
2. Faces less commercial pressure (but still faces regulatory constraints)

Question 9

What are Independent & Crowdfunded models?

Answer 9

• Independent models= Newspapers that operate independently due to reader donations or crowdfunding.
• Example= The Independent/ The Guardian (donation-based)

Question 10

What impact does Independent & Crowfunded Models have on the newspaper industry?

Answer 10

1. Greater editorial freedom.
2. Financial instability due to no advertising or subscriptions.

Question 11

News Corp and Lord Rothermere’s Daily Mail group control….

Answer 11

• 60% of national newspaper circulation.