After reading this chapter on media economics, it is alarming to me how concentrated media ownership is. Major media conglomerates essentially dominates important aspects of mass communication. This is significant because they have so much to do with public opinion and thought. Media ownership is a big responsibility and should be more diverse in it's ownership so it allows for more diverse thought, travel of information, and diversity in American culture.
Concentration of media ownership also restricts what becomes readily available to the public. If major media companies such as Disney and Time Warner constantly compete in different media markets (film, television, radio etc) they essentially dominate the market and make it very difficult for outside companies that are smaller to compete. Therefore, the message that is being massively viewed is coming from very few sources.
Also, there is the issue of media bias among concentrated media ownership. This is when conglomerates send out their "version" of a story or report. For instance, Fox news by News Corp owned by Rupert Murdoch is conservative news reporting. Therefore, they will more likely report on news that will favor Republicans and will have tried to show Democrats in a more negative light. This leads to more misinformed audiences.
IN this video, Jon Stewart on the set of Fox News, calls out the bias of Fox New's .
This video was interesting as it relates to this chapter and a conversation as well as a back and forth argument ensues.
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