4.2 Ownership and control Flashcards
1
Q
Concentration of ownership
A
- Bagdikian (2004) points out in 1983, 50 corporations controlled the vast majority of all news in media.
- By 2014, media ownership in the USA was concentrated in six corporations: Comcast, Disney, 21st Century Fox News/News Corporations,Time Warner, Viacom and CBS Corporation.
2
Q
The British newspaper industry
A
- Curran (2003) suggests there has been a similar concentration of ownership in the British newspaper since early 20th century.
- Seven individuals dominate the ownership and content of UK national daily and Sunday newspapers:
News Corp - Rupert Murdoch (e.g The Sun)
DMG, formerly Associated Newspapers - Lord Rothermere (e.g Daily Mail)
Northern & Shell - Richard Desmond (e.g Daily Express)
The London Evening Standard - Alexander Lebedev (e.g The independent)
The Telegraph Group - Barclay Brothers
3
Q
The British broadcasting media
A
- The content of commercial terrestrial TV is mainly controlled by one company such as ITV plc, which currently owns 12 of 15 regional commercial franchises.
- Channel 5 owned by Richard Desmond
- Access to TV is generally controlled bye 3 companies - Sky plc, Virgin and BT.
4
Q
What is Horizontal integration?
A
- Bigger media companies often own a range of different types of media outlets. e.g. News Corp, owns newspapers in Britain and Australia.
5
Q
What is Vertical integration?
A
- Increasing trend of media multinationals to control all levels of media production e.g. Time Warner makes own films and distributes them to its own cinema complexes whereas News Corp owns TV and film studios as well as the satellite channels that show them.
6
Q
What is Lateral explosion?
A
- Occurs when media companies diversify into new business areas in order to spread economic risk. e.g. The Virgin group has big interest in music, publishing. However, it sells insurance and banking services as well as running an airline and health services.
7
Q
What are Global Conglomerates?
A
- Globalisation has opened up new international markets such as internet and phones - media companies transforming into transnational conglomerates that monopolise ownership of diversity of media across countries.
8
Q
What is Technological convergence?
A
- Trend of putting several technologies into one media delivery system such as a phone, tablet, laptop.
- This reinforces concentration of media ownership as in the past these three media delivery systems would have been produced by companies that specialized in those products.
9
Q
Doyle (2002)
A
- We need to study media ownership and control as it is important for societies to have a diverse and pluralistic media provision.
- If concentration of the media ownership occurs in a society there is no danger that abuses of power and influence by elites will go unnoticed - democracy and justice will suffer.
10
Q
The economics of media ownership (Pluralists)
A
- Media ownership is driven by profit and competition rather than political influence.
- Consumers hold power through their buying choices, as they can reject biased or unwanted media products, e.g. failure of Blackberry.
- Whale (1977) suggests that ‘media owners have global problems of trade and investement to occupy their minds.’ - don’t have time to think of the running of their business.
11
Q
The media as a democratic mirror (Pluralists)
A
- Media products available are extremely diverse.
- The media mirrors what the audience wants or sees as important, e.g if newspapers raise concerns on Jeremy Corbyn refusing to push nuclear button, pluralists would argue that owners, editors and journalists are mirroring the concerns of UK citizens about the threat to its security.
12
Q
Public service broadcasting (Pluralists)
A
- Public Service Broadcasters, like the BBC and Channel 4, are state controlled and valued for their impartially and diverse content.
- The BBC, established by Royal Charter in 1926, has a legal duty to inform, educate and entertain all social groups while maintaining impartiality.
- Critics argue the BBC is becoming more commercialised to compete with private broadcasters, although Pluralists see this as a positive increase in audience choice.
13
Q
State controls (Pluralists)
A
- In some societies, governments do not always allow owners to own too many media, in order to reduce the possibility that one groups or persons views or products become too dominant, e.g. US, huge film studios have been limited from owning film production and cinemas at the same time.
- BBC and ITV also have legal requirements.
14
Q
Media professionalism (Pluralists)
A
- Argue journalists have too much integrity to be regularly biased in favour of one particular perspective.
- Media has a strong tradition of investigative journalism, often targets those in power.
15
Q
Criticisms of pluralists theory
A
- Blumer and Gurevitch (1995) - many journalists are over reliant on official sources. Surveys from the general public show significant numbers do not trust journalists.
- Feminists - range of female voices davalaiable in marketplace are narrow.
- Trowler (2004) - 500 journalists were embedded with British & American troops during invasion of Iraq - one sided - attachment to soldiers.
16
Q
The role of ideology (Marxists)
A
- Capitalist class uses ideology to make sure WC accept capitalism and doesn’t threaten its stability.
- Capitalist class use its cultural power to control institutions such as mass media - transmit ruling class ideology - convince people of benefits of capitalism, justify inequalities.
- Produces a false class consciousness among working class - unable to see the true cause of their social and economic situation.
17
Q
Milliband (1973) - Instrumentalist
A
- The mass media represent an idealogical instrument that plays a key role in reproduction and justification of class inequality - do this by transmitting a conservative and conformist ideology in form of news and entertainment.
- Media owners shape and manipulate how people think about the world they live in e.g, media rarely inform public about why people continue to live in poverty - very positive on wealth & Royal family.
18
Q
Castles & Kosack (1973) - Instrumentalist
A
- Suits capitalist class for white WC people to view ethnic minorities as a threat that distracts them from real cause of inequality.
- Ensure members of society get a narrow range of approved views and knowledge, with result of critical points of view rarely heard or dismissed as extremist.
19
Q
Marcuse - Instrumentalist
A
- Media owners play a kay role in helping to control WC through ‘bread and circus’ approach, deliberately making sure media output is mainly entertainment orientated so people are kept happy.
20
Q
Tunstall and Palmer (1991) - Instrumentalist
A
- Government are not longer interested in controlling the activities media owners as class interests of media owners and political elite overlap.
- ‘Regulatory favors’ are norm, newspapers owned by a media conglomerate will directly support a government or neglect to criticise government policy or even withhold information from public failing to enforce media regulation.
21
Q
Evidence for instrumentalist theory
A
- Curran argues from 1951 to 1974 there was greater degeneration by owners to journalist and editors authority.
- From 1997, Curran argues media ownership has been based on an ideology of ‘global conservatism’ as British newspapers have moved into the global marketplace e.g. Rupert Murdoch.
22
Q
Criticism for Instrumentalist theory
A
- Rarely explain how an owners media manipulation works in practice - evidence shown tends to be partial rather than based on research. (Milliband)
- Assume ruling class ideology has affect upon audience - Gramsci argues WC are likely to experience ‘dual consciousness’ instead of false class consciousness, meaning they may agree with aspects of ruling class ideology but their experience of everyday life means they can reject the ideology transmitted
23
Q
Glasgow University Media Group (GUMG)
A
- Suggests media content does support interests of those who run capitalist society system but hegemony is an accidental by product of social backgrounds of journalist and broadcasters.
- Sutton Trust Report in 2006 and 2012 found leading news and current affairs journalist more likely to of not to of been to independent schools, that educate 7% of population.
24
Q
Economic pressures
A
- Most media companies aim to make profits by attracting advertising, if it is seen as offensive or upsetting then profits decline.
25
Agenda setting
- Deciding how media items are going to be framed e.g. who is going to be invited to discus topics and what questions will be asked e.g. news taking side of dominant group such as white MC males.
26
Jones (2015)
- Sees media owners, editors and journalists as part of the 'Establishment' , which he defines as an alliance of unaccountable powerful groups, aiming to protect their dominant position in society by managing democracy.
- Should be medias job to scrunitise the activities of the Establishment.
27
Criticism of hegemonic Marxist view
- The GUMG's exclusive focus on media professionals implies owners have little or no input in media production, probably unrealistic.
- Fails to consider that, as media largely owned and controlled by men, agenda setting is a patriarchal exercise that served to limit women's roles in media production and content.
28
Three characteristics that postmodernist society has?
- Media saturated - Trowler (1995) 'the media are not just one aspect among many of the postmodern condition, but its as intimate, defining aspect'
- Underpinned by globalisation - media used technologies like internet to increase consumer choice.
- People no longer have faith in truths, skeptical.
29
Baudrillard (1998)
- Argues postmodern revolution in communications media means audience are involved in information making it hard to distinguish reality compared to media.
- They call this 'hyper-reality'.
30
Polysemic (Trowler)
there are many ways to interpret media content e.g. comic may reviewed as pleasurable, humorous or source of information.
31
Levene (2007)
- Observed how members of society now have greater choice in access to diversity of media.
- Uni students were able to use media to create a 'viral' campaign to defeat corporate giant HSBC.
32
Criticisms of Postmodernist theory
- exaggerate impact of 'information explosion'
- research based on anecdotes rather than real life evidence
- marxist argue they fail to acknowledge overwhelming evidence for existence of structural inequalities in wealth and power.
