Illusion of choice: 6 Companies Control 90% of What You Read, Watch and Hear
Denne artikel gĂŠlder amerikanske forhold, men hvorfor er danske og europĂŠiske medier ogsĂ„ blevet sĂ„ pĂ„faldende ens, at folk der ogsĂ„ er ‘alternativt informerede’ knapt kan fĂžre en samtale med MSM-informerede?
Hvordan spiller ejerforholdene ind? Et knusende flertal af danskere var enige om Trump, klima, Ukraine og Covid-vacciner. Stort set ingen opinion eller oplysning om bivirkninger eller dĂždsfald har fundet vej til dem, i sĂ„dan en grad, at propaganda og hjernevask er det eneste passende ord. Ej heller om truckerne i Canada. Idag kan man endda i Ăstrig fĂ„ op til 50 000 Euros i bĂžde for at sprede russiske medier som Sputnik og RT, der uden tvivl ogsĂ„ er propaganda, men mere end VesteuropĂŠiske efterhĂ„nden er? Hvad har vi at blĂŠre os over sammenlignet med Rusland? Er journalister blevet rene, underordnede samlebĂ„ndsarbejdere med en stĂžrre lĂžn og selvfĂžlelse? Follow the money:
In a recent Twitter survey I conducted, nearly 90% of people rated their trust in mainstream media as either âvery lowâ or âlow.â And is it any surprise? Ever-mounting media consolidation has narrowed the perspectives the public is privy to, ownership and funding of these corporations are riddled with conflicts of interest, crucial stories keep suspiciously getting buried and big tech companies are outright censoring and demonetizing independent outlets trying to break through the noise.
In a recent survey I conducted, 60% of journalists said theyâd worked for a publication that got bought by a larger company while they were there â and 40% of that group admitted to witnessing negative changes in their job expectations or work environment after the acquisition.
It may go without saying, but the media plays an almost nauseatingly prominent role in our everyday lives, especially here in the United States. In fact, Americans spend an average of 12 and a half hours per day consuming news via the television, Internet, newspapers, magazines and radio.
But have you ever noticed that so much of what youâre reading, seeing and hearing has started to sound â well, exactly the same? Youâre not imagining things. Thereâs even a name for this phenomenon: âthe illusion of choice.â Weâre presented with what feels like an endless array of options for where to get our news.
But in reality, the information from most of those sources trickles down from the same few conglomerates. Year after year, economic power has become increasingly concentrated across numerous industries â including tech, healthcare, banking, airlines and pharmaceuticals.
Today, just six conglomerates â Comcast, Disney, AT&T, Sony, Fox and Paramount Global (formerly known as ViacomCBS) â control 90% of what you watch, read, or listen to. To put this into perspective: that means about 232 media executives have the power to decide what information 277 million Americans are able to access. In 2021, the âbig sixâ banked a total of more than $478 billion in revenue. Thatâs more than both Finlandâs and Ukraineâs GDP combined.
The issue extends to print media and radio giants, too: iHeartMedia owns 863 radio stations nationwide, while Gannett owns more than 100 daily U.S. newspapers and nearly 1,000 weeklies.6 Companies Control 90% of What You Read, Watch and Hear.