Media ownership and control

Question 1

Types of mass media ownership

Answer 1

• Community = run by or serves community
• Public = role to “educate, inform or educate”
• Private = provided by individuals / private groups

Question 2

Media concentration

Answer 2

Small companies swallowed up by larger ones

Question 3

Ben Bagdikian

Answer 3

• The Media Monopoly
• Predicted fewer and fewer
• Only 5 huge corporations now control most of the media

Question 4

Ben Bagdikian exam fact

Answer 4

If the USA’s media were owned by separate individuals there would be 15 billion owners

Question 5

Cause of concentration of media organisation - Vertical integration

Answer 5

• The process which all aspects of production and distribution are acquired by 1 owner
• E.g. Hollywood in the 20th century, only 5 companies distributed films

Question 6

Cause of concentration of media organisation - Horizontal integration

Answer 6

• The process by which an owner acquires a variety of different types of media
• E.g. Ruppert Murdoch owns 20th century fox, sky The Times

Question 7

Cause of concentration of media organisation - Expansion of transactional organisations = global media

Answer 7

• The process by which an owner quires media across the world
• E.g. Ruppert murdoch

Question 8

Synergy

Answer 8

Where the whole is greater than the sum of it’s parts - when two or more people/organisations combine their

Question 9

Diversification

Answer 9

E.g. Virgin which began as a music label but expanded into a wide range of products

Question 10

Liberal approach - Curran and Seaton (pluralists)

Answer 10

• Mass media concentration doesn’t matter

- Audience benefits from the fact that media is concentrated in the hands of a few companies

Question 11

Media deregulation

Answer 11

Laws which limit concentration of ownership should be abolished

Question 12

Radical approach - Mosco (marxists)

Answer 12

• Media organisations have a responsibility to provide a public service paid for by the tax payer like the BBC have to provide a service
• Audience choice is limited

Question 13

Is media concentration a good thing? Liberal

Answer 13

Yes

Question 14

Is media concentration a good thing? Radical

Answer 14

No

Question 15

Liberal

Answer 15

Curran and Seaton
> Organisations have to compete for the audience, ensuring quality
> Organisation will go out of business
> Deregualtion in 1988

Question 16

Radical

Answer 16

Mosco
X Private = making profit, not the advertiser
X Regulated state owned media
X Deregulation in 1988