Curran and seaton industry and ownership 2020 part 1

A Level Media Studies
Media Industry Theory

1. Media Industry James Curran and Jean Seaton: Industry and Ownership

2. Back ground: James Curran Prof James Curran Professor of Communications Department Media, Communications and Cultural Studies Goldsmiths University of London A pioneer of media studies, James Curran taught on the first media studies degree established in Britain, and became the first Professor of Communications at the University of London in 1989. Written / edited over 20 books about the media and media history, some in collaboration with others. Interests broadened to include the study of contemporary journalism and the Internet. Co-Director of the Goldsmiths Leverhulme Media Research Centre, supported by a £1.25 million grant, and the joint author of Misunderstanding the Internet, whose second edition appeared in 2016. Full bio: https://www.gold.ac.uk/media-communications/staff/curran/

3. Back ground: Jean Seaton Professor of Media History at the University of Westminster and the Official Historian of the BBC She has written widely on the history and role of the media in politics, wars, atrocities, the Holocaust, revolutions, security issues and religion as well as news and journalism and is particularly interested in the impact of the media on children. In 2007 she became Chair of the Orwell Prize , Britain’s premier prize for political writing. She broadcasts regularly on historical, political and cultural matters. She supervises PhD students across a wide range of political and cultural topics. Full Bio: https://camri.ac.uk/blog/staff/professor-jean-seaton/ Jean Seaton Professor of Media History (and the Official Historian of the BBC The Communication and Media Research Institute (CAMRI) University of Westminster

4. Power Without Responsibility Most famous among Curran and Seaton’s publications is their joint work “Power Without Responsibility” First published in 1981, it has since been revised and updated numerous times and in 2018 published it’s 8 th edition. ”This book attacks the conventional history of the press as a story of progress; offers a critical defence and history of public service broadcasting; provides a myth-busting account of the internet; a subtle account of the impact of social media and explores key debates about the role and politics of the media.”

5. Curran and Seaton: Key Ideas The media is controlled by a small number of companies primarily driven by the logic of profit and power Media Concentration generally limits or inhibits variety, creativity and quality More socially diverse patterns of ownership help to create the conditions for more varied and adventurous media productions

6. Curran and Seaton: Key Ideas - 1 The media is controlled by a small number of companies primarily driven by the logic of profit and power

7. Curran and Seaton: Key Ideas - 1 The media is controlled by a small number of companies primarily driven by the logic of profit and power What evidence is there that the media is controlled by only a small number of companies?

8. Curran and Seaton: Key Ideas - 1 The media is controlled by a small number of companies primarily driven by the logic of profit and power What evidence is there that the media is controlled by only a small number of companies? Visit the website: https://www.mediareform.org.uk/media-ownership/who-owns-the-uk-media

9. Media Reform Coalition James Curran has written numerous articles advocating media reform and is a supporter of the media reform coalition

10. Media Reform Coalition The Media Reform Coalition is a campaign group set up in September 2011 to coordinate the most effective contribution by civil society groups, academics and media campaigners to debates over media regulation, ownership and democracy in the context of the phone hacking crisis and proposed communications legislation. The Media Reform Coalition is committed to: Supporting media pluralism Defending ethical journalism Protecting investigative and local journalism .

11. Media Reform Coalition The hacking scandal and its aftermath demonstrated how that power has been used nationally, whilst at local level community after community is losing the means to publicly hold power to account. The Media Reform Coalition believe that urgent reform is needed to reclaim the media in the interest of the public. http://www.mediareform.org.uk

12. Media Concentration: Disney Complete the puzzle to view how many media companies Disney owns today

13. Media Reform Coalition Today (2019) Britain has one of the most concentrated media environments in the world ; Just three companies dominate 83% of national newspaper circulation; five companies account for 80% of national newspaper newsbrand reach; five companies command 80% of local newspaper titles; and two companies own nearly half of all commercial analogue radio stations.. http://www.mediareform.org.uk

14. Media Ownership: Key Terms Homework Research online to find definitions for the following media ownership terms: Conglomerate (Media) Convergence Corporation Cross-Media Horizontal Integration Media Pluralism Monopoly Oligopoly Public Service Broadcasting Subsidiary Synergy Vertical Integration

15. Research Task: Media Ownership For your assigned media company, research online to find out what other media companies, subsidiaries and related assets it owns. Answer the following questions: When was the company established? Who is it owned by? (people/another company? Where is it based? Do they have a “mission statement” What media assets does it own? (COMPANIES, IP, ETC) Annual turnover/revenue? Audience reach/sales/ % market share Number of employees An interesting/controversial fact Use photoshop to create a collage of logos, images and text on an A3 poster to display the information. News Corp Bauer Trinity Mirror DMG Northern Shell Universal BBC ITV plc Viacom NBCUniversal SONY

16. Research Task: Media Ownership/example Global Radio

17. 25.2 million listeners each week (Source: RAJAR)

18. https:// www.theneweuropean.co.uk /top-stories/viral-anti-tory-campaign-criticises-right-wing-press-1-6386691 Discuss

19. Curran and Seaton: Key Ideas - 1 The media is controlled by a small number of companies primarily driven by the logic of profit and power Beside making money and gaining power for their owners/producers, what other purposes could media productions fulfil?

20. Curran and Seaton: Key Ideas - 1 The media is controlled by a small number of companies primarily driven by the logic of profit and power Beside making money and gaining power for their owners/producers, what other purposes could media productions fulfil? To entertain? To inform? To contribute to society? Increase social cohesion and a sense of community?

21. The Logic of Profit and Power Disney CEO 1984-20095

22. The Logic of Profit and Power

23. Curran and Seaton: Key Ideas - 1 The media is controlled by a small number of companies primarily driven by the logic of profit and power It is not surprising to think that media companies are primarily driven by profit , this is true of most businesses in a capitalist economy . The concern comes when a company’s desire for profit is put before the well being of others .

24. Curran and Seaton: Key Ideas - 1 The media is controlled by a small number of companies primarily driven by the logic of profit and power Today, newspaper sales are in decline and most actually often operate at a loss. In 2016, Murdoch’s tabloids reported a £253m loss https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2016/03/23/murdochs-tabloids-report-253m-loss/

25. Curran and Seaton: Key Ideas - 1 The media is controlled by a small number of companies primarily driven by the logic of profit and power Today, newspaper sales are in decline and most actually often operate at a loss. In 2016, Murdoch’s tabloids reported a £253m loss https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2016/03/23/murdochs-tabloids-report-253m-loss/ So if they are not making a profit for their owners through sales, what other benefits can they offer?

26. Curran and Seaton: Key Ideas - 1 The media is controlled by a small number of companies primarily driven by the logic of profit and power Today, newspaper sales are in decline and most actually often operate at a loss. In 2016, Murdoch’s tabloids reported a £253m loss https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2016/03/23/murdochs-tabloids-report-253m-loss/ So if they are not making a profit for their owners through sales, what other benefits can they offer? Newspaper owners are able to use their publications to promote policies and politicians that suit their business interests. – i.e. for power

27. As a rule, right-wing parties are seen as ‘pro-business’. They support lower taxes and less regulation . This gives business owners (such as newspapers) greater freedom to make money, grow their business and keep more of the money they make.

28. Rupert Murdoch $21.5 Billion News Corp, News UK 4th Viscount Rothermere $1. Billion Daily Mail and General Trust (DGMT) 1,410,896 417,298 1,246,568 The Barclays Brothers $5.9 Billion 360,345 233,868 1,426,050 508,705 329,971 321,146 plc = public limited company

29. Most UK newspapers support Right-wing parties Left wing: ( Labour /Lib Dem/Green) The Daily Mirror ( 508,705) The Guardian ( 141,160) The i ( 233,868) Right Wing: Conservatives/Brexit Party/UKIP The Sun ( 1,410,896) The Daily Mail ( 1,246,568 ) The Daily Express ( 321,146) The Telegraph ( 360,345) The Times ( 417,298)

30. Newspapers and political bias Support for politicians and their policies can vary from the obvious to the more subtle. It may be through positive or negative representations of them in news articles, or endorsing them at an election. Or it can be how they cover a seemingly unrelated article. For instance, if you are in support of lower taxes, then you may be more likely to run articles discrediting things that taxes are then spent on such as welfare benefits, foreign aid or support for asylum seekers. Newspaper owners may even make political donations. In 2010, Murdoch donated $1m to The Republican Party In 2015 Richard Desmond, the owner of The Daily Express, donated £1m to UKIP.

31. Newspapers and political bias Support for politicians and their policies can vary from the obvious to the more subtle. It may be through positive or negative representations of them in news articles, or endorsing them at an election. http://www.lse.ac.uk/media-and-communications/research/research-projects/representations-of-jeremy-corbyn

32. Newspapers and political bias Or it can be how they cover a seemingly unrelated article. For instance, if you are in support of lower taxes, then you may be more likely to run articles discrediting things that taxes are then spent on such as welfare benefits, foreign aid or support for asylum seekers.

33. Newspapers setting the ‘news agenda’ With such a ride readership, newspapers are often able to set the news agenda. In other words, they lead and control what things people are talking about. Even if Newspapers don’t necessarily tell you what to think, they do tell you what to think about.

34. Newspapers setting the ‘news agenda’ For instance, the great ’pacific garbage patch’ has recently become widely recognized as a symbol of the plastic problem in the ocean. To a large extent, this was after it was highlighted in the Blue Plant 2 documentary in 2015 But the problem was actually identified by NOAA scientists in 1988. But it received minimal coverage in the news, so people did not give it much thought.

35. Newspapers setting the ‘news agenda’ Sometimes, the link between government policy and the news agenda is even more explicit In this extract, veteran journalist Peter Oborn explains how the then Labour government colluded with The Sun Newspaper to run anti-asylum seeker articles months in advance of announcing their new policy to clamp down on asylum seekers. This made it look like The Sun had ‘won’ by getting the government to react and that the government had done a good thing by listening to public opinion. In fact, tit was all orchestrated. The government had always planned to introduce the policy, but needed to get public support for it first. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-L6U0ZQE32E

36. Rupert Murdoch & Brexit Andrew Hilton, The Evening Standard https://www.standard.co.uk/comment/comment/anthony-hilton-stay-or-go-the-lack-of-solid-facts-means-it-s-all-a-leap-of-faith-a3189151.html

37. Most UK newspapers support Right-wing parties Newspaper owners may even make political donations. In 2010, Murdoch donated $1m to The Republican Party In 2015 Richard Desmond, the owner of The Daily Express, donated £1m to UKIP.

38. What do newspaper owners get in return? In return, newspaper owners may receive favourable treatment for their business activities. During the 1980s, Murdoch’s newspapers supported the Conservative government of Margaret Thatcher. In return for this support, Thatcher helped approve Murdoch’s controversial purchase of The Times. In the 1990s, the papers dropped their support for the Conservative party and Thatcher’s successor John Major, because Murdoch did not approve of his European policy. The newspapers switched support to Tony Blair’s Labour premiereship for 3 elections. Then, in 2010, Murdoch’s papers switched support back to David Cameron’s Conservative party. Once elected, Cameron ‘froze’ BBC funding for 6 years (effectively a cut). Murdoch has long been critical of the BBC and reducing their budget would help rival news providers such as his newspapers and Sky News (which he also had a majority share in) Andy Coulson was editor at Murdoch’s News of The World before becoming the Conservative Party’s Director of Communications . (He later resigned and was sentenced in relation to the phone hacking scandal).

39. What do newspaper owners get in return? Newspaper owners can use their voice to get public and political support for things that support their business interests, such as: Low taxation Low media regulation Pro capitalist/consumerist ideologies

40. Curran and Seaton: Key Ideas - 2 Media Concentration generally limits or inhibits variety, creativity and quality What do you understand by this statement? How/why might the media being owned by relatively few people/companies have a negative impact upon variety, creativity and quality

41. Curran and Seaton: Key Ideas - 2 Media Concentration generally limits or inhibits variety, creativity and quality We have established that media ownership is concentrated into relatively few companies. How/why might the media being owned by relatively few people/companies have a negative impact upon variety, creativity and quality? What evidence is there to suggest that this is the case?

42. Curran and Seaton: Key Ideas - 3 More socially diverse patterns of ownership help to create the conditions for more varied and adventurous media productions What might a more ‘socially diverse pattern of ownership’ look like?

43. Curran and Seaton: Key Ideas - 3 More socially diverse patterns of ownership help to create the conditions for more varied and adventurous media productions What might a more ‘socially diverse pattern of ownership’ look like? Public ownership: BBC, Channel 4 Cooperatives: The Bristol Cable A Trust – The Guardian – “ The Scott Trust forms part of a unique ownership structure for the Guardian that ensure editorial interests remain free of commercial pressures” https://www.theguardian.com/the-scott-trust/2015/jul/26/the-scott-trust Web 2.0, Social media, prosumers and user generated content

44. Curran and Seaton: Key Ideas - 3 More socially diverse patterns of ownership help to create the conditions for more varied and adventurous media productions How might this ‘create the conditions for more varied and adventurous media productions’? BBC and Channel 4 are both ‘not-for-profit’, publicly owned public service broadcasters. It is part of their licence agreement with Ofcom that they have to make programming that is ‘of a service to the public BBC: “ To inform, educate and entertain” - Channel 4: ‘Born Risky’ – alternative voices, innovation

45. Curran and Seaton: Applied to set products The specification requires that you are able to apply these ideas in relation to the following set products Component 1 Section B The Daily Mirror, The Times*, Late Night Women’s Hour, Straight Outta Compton/Black Panther, I Daniel Blake*, Assassin’s Creed 3 Liberation Component 2 Humans, The Returned*, Vogue, The Big Issue* * = A2/Y2 only.