The resignation of FCC chairman Michael Powell, who was pushing for relaxing media consolidation rules, is old news, as is the subsequent news that President Bush would quit pursuing media ownership deregulation. What caught my eye just now was this line in the New York Times article (login) regarding the second piece of news:
Relaxation of the rules had been advanced by most of the broadcast television networks and many large media companies, including the News Corporation, Tribune, the Gannett Company and The New York Times Company.
I like how they listed News Corp first to make it look the worst, but you’ll note that bastion of liberal thought, the New York Times Company, is also on the list. Just goes to show they’re all in for a buck and really couldn’t care less about what shows up on the front page as long as it sells.
Ted Turner, of all people, wrote a good essay about the dismal state of corporate media that’s been making the rounds lately, even though it was published last summer. It’s sort of hard to swallow considering he tried to consolidate his empire just like the rest of the corporate whores focused purely on making money, but it still contains some fascinating information.
