Media follows us everywhere, even when we’re not actively seeking it. A person can not walk a block without seeing some sort of media- unless you’re somewhere away from civilization.
Media is defined as a “means of mass communication” according to the Oxford English Dictionary and takes on the form of newspapers, online articles, movies, television, social media, etc.
News media, in particular through the work of journalists, have the ability to keep people informed about what is happening around them regardless of their political beliefs.
It’s becoming a significant part of how our democracy is run and how people communicate with each other, which allows us as individuals and communities to make informed decisions.
But what happens when the individuals at the top of these big media corporations move away from the idea of keeping people informed with facts? Owners are now prioritizing revenue and are hyperfixated on where money is being spent regardless of whether their news is now deteriorating in quality.
The Telecommunication Act of 1996 signed by President Bill Clinton, was the beginning of this apocalyptic media field. The act promised that it would create more competition in the media business because it reduced regulations on media companies, allowing them to develop more choices. TV stations may own an unlimited number of channels whereas before they had a limit.
In theory, this sounded like an act that would work; however, large corporations continued buying smaller media outlets and caused media to be concentrated.
All of our media is controlled by six media corporations, which are AT&T, CBS, Comcast, Disney, Newscorp and Viacom. These companies own 90% of all media throughout the country. Some news outlets owned by Disney include ABC, ESPN, and Vice. Comcast owns NBC, CNBC, MSNBC and Telemundo. In other cases, newspaper outlets are owned by billionaires such as Jeff Bezos, who owns The Washington Post, and John Henry, who owns The Boston Globe. But why does it matter if billionaires own newspapers?
Well, it’s fine if they own them. What’s not fine is how many try to censor what journalists and editors are writing about what is being published. These owners do not understand or seem to care for journalism ethics or how journalism’s unspoken job is to inform and communicate important matters to the people. A democracy thrives on the efforts of journalism because it brings facts to the people and allows them to form opinions and vote for things that affect them.
However, when these big corporations control large parts of the media and are all under someone’s rule it doesn’t allow for multiple viewpoints, creating a toxic environment.
Recently, censorship has become a larger issue in our news. Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos had to defend his choice in canceling presidential endorsements before the 2025 elections.
“Presidential endorsements do nothing to tip the scales of an election…What presidential endorsements do is create a perception of bias,” Jeff Bezos wrote in a published piece on the Post’s website. This controversial decision upset the editorial page, which planned on endorsing Kamala Harris. It’s common for newspapers to endorse and allow readers to understand why the newspaper believes that the candidate is the best choice with the research they put into making an informed decision.
Jeff Bezos’s relationship with Donald Trump during his first presidential term was rocky, as Trump often criticized The Washington Post. However, now with Trump being in his second presidential term, Bezos’s relationship with him has completely changed.
His company, Amazon, donated one million dollars to his inaugural fund and made the inauguration live available on Amazon Prime. It seems that Bezos’s personal preferences for the government are directly influencing how he’s choosing to run the Washington Post.
Going back to the beginning of our democracy, when the British Empire controlled the United States, it was the use of the printing press that helped us fight back against the British. With the printing press, colonists were able to spread the word of how English tariffs were imposing on their lives and allowed them to gather public opinion and start rebelling. The British Empire’s media was controlled by the government, allowing them to continue to abuse the public and those who were not aristocrats. The past corruption of the kings and current corruptions of politicians and others in power further prove the importance of media that finds facts and makes them transparent to the public. Without transparency right now in our country, we are at risk of getting thrown back in time to when the general public was ruled and bullied by the upper class.
With one organization controlling the media, public opinion can not flourish, and people can not be held accountable for their wrongdoings.
Jeff Bezo is censoring what topics columnists are allowed to write about in the Washington Post if it does not align with “personal liberties and free markets”. The history of the Washington Post opinion piece often criticizes and comments on people with power who are being held accountable for their wrongful actions.
Large corporations have also affected smaller organizations. Alden Global Capital is the second-largest newspaper owner in the United States and has a history of downsizing and cutting staff in the companies they own. They own the San Diego Union-Tribune, The Baltimore Sun, The Orange County Register, and many more.
As newsrooms become smaller, it directly affects what information is shown to the public that allows them to inform citizens about their community. A less informed community leads to less civic engagement, resulting in corruption in their local governments. Local governments are now able to get away with greed more easily as fewer reporters may be present during council meetings, such as local government officials increasing their income.
Power, control and greed with media corporations ultimately lead to catastrophic results such as uninformed citizens, controlling of public opinion, and corruption. Democracy has always thrived on the efforts of journalism to create a more informed community. Without information and big media corporations’ narrow views, democracy is gone, and the country becomes oligarchical.
