theories of ownership and control Flashcards
media concentration
media concentration is declining. trends show that the number of companies that control global mass media has been declining over recent years (1983 - 50 corporations compared to 2004 - corporations)
conglomeration
unlike in the past, media companies are now global conglomerates that have a major presence in many countries
horizontal integration
this is where global media corporations cross media boundaries and invest in a wide range of products e.g the new york times
vertical integration
this is where media companies control multiple aspects of production in order to maximise profits e.g netflix make movies and make them exclusive to their website
synergy
this is where media companies package their products in several ways. eg movies having soundtracks, television shows producing video games
lateral expansion
this is where media corporations expand to fields sperate from media. eg virgin has expanded from internet to trains, holidays, spas
technological convergence
this is where several technologies are put into one product eg iphones have video, radio, newspapers
althusser (marxist)
believes that the media is a part of the ideological state apparatus - it is a form of brainwashing by the bourgeoisie
milliband (marxist)
argues that the role of the media is to shape how we think about the world. he suggests that the news rarely shares information about real issues such as poverty or class inequality, and therefore, the bourgeisie is rarely questioned or criticised, and capitalism persists
tunstall and palmer
they argue that governments are no longer interested in controlling the activities of media owners because they need their support in order to hold onto their power
what are limitations of the marxist perspective of ownership and control?
- they assume that audiences are passive and ignore’s the fact that they choose to actively engage in media
- it only focuses on profit, it is economically deterministic
- it ignores the fact that media owners don’t control all content of media, journalists and editors do
glasgow university media group (gumg) (neomarxist)
they argue that while media content does support the views of the capitalist system, this is an unintentional byproduct of the backgrounds of journalists/broadcasters and it is not a capitalist conspiracy. GUMG points out that the majority of broadcasters/journalists are white, middle class, men and so, their reports support the ruling class ideology.
barnett and weymour (neomarxist)
they argue that tv has been ‘dumbed down’ which leads to audiences being less educated and less able to challenge the dominant capitalist ideology, which creates a false class consciousness
what are some criticisms of the neomarxist perspective of ownership and control
-not all journalists are right wing, as suggested by GUMG
- there is diversity in the media
what is the pluralist view of ownership and control
-editors, journalists and broadcasters have a strong sense of professional ethics and so they will check and control potential owner abuse of the media
-they suggest that mass media is an essential part of the democratic process as the electorate today obtain most of their information about the political process from television and newspaper
-the media supply what the audience wants, ather than what the owner decides. therefore, if there is an over-representation of a certain viewpoint, this reflects the wants of the audience rather than bias
