Excerpt
382 When Watchdogs Become Lap Dogs
Until 1996, the U.S. government provided safeguards against the formation of media monopolies. In fact, the Supreme Court ruled in 1945 that any media mergers narrowing the dissemination of information were unconstitutional.
A change demanded by a Republican-controlled Congress and signed into law by Bill Clinton deregulated the media industry in 1996. It was supposed to result in more media options for the American public but instead what the U.S. witnessed was the beginning of mass media mergers and consolidations. With the 2001 arrival of George W. Bush and his appointees to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) began the largest erosion of free speech in the U.S. media ever observed. The Bush appointed FCC has shown its contempt for the American public. The FCC continually sides with the industry it is supposed to be regulating and providing oversight upon. In 2003, FCC Chairman Michael Powell (son of former Secretary of State Colin Powell) approved a proposal to further deregulate the telecommunications industry, giving the media greater opportunities for additional consolidation. The proposal was blocked only because of the incredible public outcry of three million consumers who disagreed with the ruling. This public response did not change the initial vote by the FCC. Rather, it influenced Congress, who ultimately stopped the FCC proposal.1
A whole host of rule changes by the FCC has resulted in public fury and bipartisan congressional battles. The congressional debate related to media ownership in 2004 amended the frequency of periodic ownership reviews from once every two years to once every four years. Some FCC changes have been legally overturned, but only because of public awareness and demand from Congress to intervene on behalf of the American people.
Lap Dog Number Two:
The Media, Television and Radio Monopolies
There is a media monopoly in America. I was shocked when I saw the statistics. I doubted them. Most Americans do not realize that five corporations own 80 percent of the media in America according to a documentary entitled Independent Intervention.2 The chart below shows the top five corporations and illustrates the percentage of American media outlets owned by each. These top five are: News Corporation (Fox News); Viacom (CBS); General Electric (NBC); Walt Disney (ABC); and Tribune. Three corporations own 74 percent of all radio stations in the U.S. Eight others share the remaining 26 percent of the radio stations…
