Media conglomerate
A media conglomerate describes companies that own large numbers of companies in various mass media such as television, radio, publishing, movies, and the Internet. It is also referred to as media institutions and media groups.
As of 2008, The Walt Disney Company is the world's largest media conglomerate, with News Corporation, Viacom and Time Warner ranking second, third and fourth respectively[1][2].
Terminology
A conglomerate is, by definition, a large company that consists of divisions of seemingly unrelated businesses.
It is questionable whether media companies are unrelated, as of 2007[update]. The trend has been strongly for the sharing of various kinds of content (news, film and video, music for example). The media sector is tending to consolidate, and formerly diversified companies may appear less so as a result. Therefore, the term media group may also be applied, however it has not so far replaced the more traditional usage.
Examples
Some of the most well-known media conglomerates include:
- Advance Publications
- American Media
- AOL
- AT&T
- Australian Broadcasting Corporation
- Belo
- Bertelsmann
- Bonnier Group
- Bright House Networks
- British Broadcasting Corporation
- Cablevision
- Cable One
- CanWest Global Communications
- CBS Corporation (owned by National Amusements)
- Charter Communications
- CHUM Limited
- Clear Channel Communications
- Comcast
- Cox Enterprises
- CTVglobemedia
- Dish Network
- Dow Jones
- E. W. Scripps Company
- Endemol
- Fairfax Media
- Fininvest
- Gannett
- General Electric (through NBC Universal, co-owned with Vivendi)
- Gruppo Editoriale L'Espresso
- Hearst Corporation
- Hubbard Broadcasting Corporation
- Insight Communications Company
- ITI Group
- Lagardère Media
- Liberty Media
- Mediacom
- Network Ten
- New York Times Company
- News Corporation
- Organizações Globo
- PRISA
- ProSiebenSat.1 Media AG
- PBL
- Rogers Communications
- RTL Group
- Schibsted
- Seven Media Group
- Seven Network Limited
- Sinclair Broadcast Group
- Sony
- Southern Cross Broadcasting
- Special Broadcasting Service
- Suddenlink Communications
- Sun-Times Media Group
- Talpa Media
- Televisa
- Thomson Reuters
- Time Warner
- Time Warner Cable
- The Times Group (distinct from Times Newspapers of News Corporation)
- Tribune Company
- Viacom (owned by National Amusements)
- Village Voice Media
- Vivendi (through both NBC Universal, as well as its own media assets)
- The Walt Disney Company
- Washington Post Company
- World Wrestling Entertainment
Criticism
Critics have accused the larger conglomerates of dominating media, especially news, and refusing to publicize or deem "newsworthy" information that would be harmful to their other interests, and of contributing to the merging of entertainment and news (sensationalism) at the expense of tough coverage of serious issues. They are also accused of being a leading force for the standardization of culture (see globalization, Americanization), and they are a frequent target of criticism by various groups which often perceive the news organizations as being biased toward special interests.
There is also the issue of concentration of media ownership, reducing diversity in both ownership and programming (TV shows and radio shows). There is also a strong trend in the U.S. for conglomerates to eliminate localism in broadcasting, instead using broadcast automation and voice tracking, sometimes from another city in another state. Some radio stations use prepackaged and generic satellite-fed programming with no local content, except the insertion of radio ads.