From dawn til dusk
In the 1999 Annual Report for Murdoch's News Corporation they write that "Virtually every minute of the day, in every time zone on the planet people are watching, reading and interacting with our products. We're reaching people from the moment they wake up until they fall asleep." This declaration made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. The report goes on to say that they are with people from the moment they get out of bed, while they eat breakfast, at work, after work, for news, entertainment, stock information and as they crawl in to bed at night with one of News Corp. novels. It is relatively well known that most of the information out there is controlled by a few large conglomerates that decide what we see and hear and what we don't, yet this boastful declaration of the intimate relationship News Corp. has with human beings all over the world was very frightening. And this statement was made over 12 years ago! A similar statement being made today what have to include all the internet sites and channels, satellite radio, cell phones, smart phones and applications that now provide us access to News Corp. products even more minutes out of the day, as we make very personal decisions.
What offends me most about this reality is that the democracies around the world rest on the information the public receives. Thussu points out that, "Murdoch made skillful use of liberalization of cross-media ownership regulations in Britain and the USA during the 1990's and the entry of private satellite operators into the arena of telecommunications and broadcasting." When governments began de-regulating these industries, they allowed them a bit too much power over the knowledge base of the public. Governments have allowed their public to be preyed on by and educated by unelected representatives Now government representatives have to fight to get their information out or work with these huge conglomerates on the conglomerate's terms. Governments handed power over on a silver platter.
The push for liberalization of media came under the guise that it would provide more people opportunity but, as Thussu points out, and anyone can see in numerous reports, that the liberalization of service products has increased the economy of the world, but only for a few. It has led to a GREATER disparity between the rich and poor of the world. I think it is necessary to have a close look at the de-regulation of the media and what role governments should have in protecting smaller voices, opinions and ideas of the world.
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I, like you, am troubled by that News Corp. statement, and that capitalism drives media and therefore journalism. I think that the current media systems that Thussu discusses leave little room for objectivity and real, ethical journalism that provides a valuable service to the public.
However, at the same time, changing the media system to regulate it also makes me uncomfortable. I'm not sure that there would be a good way to regulate the media while still keeping its function separate from government. Would we see more blatant censorship because of government influence on the system? More than happens now through the capitalist model? I'm not sure, but I think that it would be tough to regulate the media while still keeping with the First Amendment. I tend to think, optimistically, that a better solution would be more corporate social responsibility. I definitely think there is no easy answer for how to ensure that happens.