Ownership and control

• Neophiliacs

  Suggest the media has given people more choice and freedom to create their own content
• Cultural pessimists

  Suggest large media conglomerates often composed of traditional media producers are dominant in the ownership of new media
• Control of new media

  • Global nature, laws that apply in one nation may not apply in others
  • Some more conservative countries such as China and Islamic states have greater success in controlling content as there is greater government control
  • Unlike the traditional media, the new media is more difficult to control at source
• Marxist view

  • Media is dictated by those who own the media, not a reflection of audience tastes or attitudes
  • Media employ people who reinforce the ideology of the ruling class
• Miliband

  • Argued media played an important role in promoting false class consciousness in society and promotes the ideas of the ruling class onto its audience
  • Those who own the media have similar tastes, attributes and political ideologies and will ensure this is passed onto the audience
  • Audience is a passive recipient of information which internalises the information as fact, failing to critically analyse the source or consider alternative views
• Traditional Marxist idea

  • Owners have the ability to pick and choose which events or stories that they broadcast or publish, often presenting a one-sided account
  • Ruling class pass on ideologies through entertainment as a means of distracting individuals from wider social issues
• In 2021, 90% of newspaper circulation was controlled by 3 owners in the UK
• Curran

  • Found evidence of many media owners being involved in the day-to day affairs of newspapers, micromanaging articles and ensuring news items that might cause embarrassment to advertisers and political allies were hidden
  • In the UK majority of the press adopt conservative values and so will naturally support the ideologies of the conservative party, rarely being critical of government policy
• Neo-Marxist perspective


  • Agree the media transmits the ideology of the ruling class, but argue it's not just the owners responsible
  • Those in editor and senior reporter roles often have similar backgrounds - educated, white and middle class
  • What we see in the news is often a reflection of what journalists and editors think is important, shifting away from the concerns of the working classes
• Gramsci


  • Argued social institutions like education, religion and the media pass on the dominant ideology of the ruling class - 'hegemonic ideas'
  • Journalists, teachers and religious leaders pass on this ideology in attempt to control the masses
  • Hegemonic ideas are often middle of the road, centrist political ideas that look to preserve the status quo, while radical or revolutionary views are not promoted or are viewed negatively
• Postmodern perspective

  • Society has undergone a process of media saturation, with too many providers and sources leading to fragmentation
  • Due to digital media, people are exposed to media messages continually and become selective in their media choices, often reflecting their own world view
  • This removes challenges and critical thinking as people gravitate to what they believe and enjoy
• Levene

  Argues the ownership of media is more fluid than in previous generations and people can reject sources that try to manipulate them
• Baudrillard

  Suggests individuals are no longer able to discern between what is real and what is an imitation of reality, as media creates false narratives and snapshots of life
• Lyotard


  Argued individuals have rejected the metanarratives/ grand stories of society, leading to distrust of information that media owners push onto the public, and the creation of fake news
• Postmodern view is an idealistic view
• Pluralist view

  • Focuses on the wider range of media sources available that cater to the needs of the audience
  • Believe media ownership is more diverse than a Marxist approach, and the audience has more choice
  • Content of the media is based upon rational economics - to get the highest audience, content must reflect audience preferences
• Whale


  Argues the range of media sources available reflects the variety of competing groups in society, with alternative publications catering to those with alternative political views
• Pluralist argument

  • The media is democratic, based upon the choice people make about what they consume
  • Media sources look to reflect the social demographics of society, and in new media this is even more important as subscription services and social media platforms are based upon revenues earned
• Neo-Marxists claim the media creates false needs through advertising whilst also promoting an illusion of choice