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Congress Can No Longer Ignore Corporate Control of the Media
(U.S. Representative Bernie Sanders, June 12, 2002)
One of our best-kept secrets is the degree to which a handful of huge corporations control the flow of information in the United States. Whether it is television, radio, newspapers, magazines, books or the Internet, a few giant conglomerates are determining what we see, hear and read. And the situation is likely to become much worse as a result of radical deregulation efforts by the Bush administration and some horrendous court decisions. . . . Fox News Channel is owned by Rupert Murdoch, a right-wing Australian who already owns a significant portion of the world�s media. His network has close ties to the Republican Party, and among his �fair and balanced� commentators is Newt Gingrich. . . . NBC is owned by General Electric, one of the largest corporations in the world � and one with a long history of anti-union activity. GE, a major contributor to the Republican Party, has substantial financial interests in weapons manufacturing, finance, nuclear power and many other industries. . . . ABC is owned by the Disney Corp., which produces toys and products in developing countries where they provide their workers atrocious wages and working conditions. . . . CBS is owned by Viacom, another huge media conglomerate that owns, among other entities, MTV, Showtime, Nickelodeon, VH1, TNN, CMT, 39 broadcast television stations, 184 radio stations, Paramount Pictures and Blockbuster Inc. . . . the most important issues facing the middle-class and working people of our country are rarely discussed. The average American does not see his or her reality reflected on the television screen. . . . The United States has the most unfair distribution of wealth and income in the industrialized world, and the highest rate of childhood poverty. There�s a lot of television promoting greed and self-interest, but how many programs speak to the �justice� of the richest 1 percent owning more wealth than the bottom 95 percent? Or of the CEOs of major corporations earning 500 times what their employees make? . . . The bottom line is that fewer and fewer huge conglomerates are controlling virtually everything that the ordinary American sees, hears and reads. This is an issue that Congress can no longer ignore.

posted by LoZo 10:43 AM