The Big Six

          Six corporations own practically everything that we consume as media. These six media conglomerates are CBS, General Electric, News Corp., Time Warner, Viacom and Disney. At first glance this oligopoly may not appear to be a major issue, but once people understand the role that the media plays in keeping us informed about our lives and consider the motivations these companies have in providing us with specific content do they realize the detriment that this much power has on society. When only a few companies control the entire media industry, messages can be created to tell us what we should think and distributed in a done consistent way throughout various distribution channels that those companies own to reinforce that message. Topics that are not consistent with that message are not mentioned and are marginalized even though it may be relative to our lives. Because the media is everywhere, the public is constantly being bombarded with biased information that only tells their version of the truth.

          These six corporations and biased because of the way they are funded and the role that their sponsors play in the capitalist society. These corporations are paid by advertisers, or other companies, that want to promote their products and services while content is being released to the public. Because these advertisers pay the big six, they have a strong say in the content that is produced and released to the public. In essence, the gatekeepers of this content are the 6 CEO's that own these corporations backed by their sponsors. Because they willingly take on this role the media plays a strong role in capitalism. If companies are urging the public to consume or believe in a particular message, the media is their means of doing so.

          So how do the six corporations get away with this? Shouldn't there be someone regulating them? That is the role of the FCC. This government-funded entity is responsible for overseeing the content that is produced for the public and verifying that it is appropriate. However, the FCC is also biased and allows certain program to be produced, despite its responsibilities in protecting the public. This bias lies in the structure of how candidates are chosen to be part of the organization, in which those appointed are often past CEO's of these same big six corporations. So although the FCC is supposed to represent the public, they often pledge allegiance to the corporations that got them to their position.

          So what is another solution to the excessive power that these media companies have? Some argue that social media is a good approach. Sites like Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Instagram and Vine allow the public to produce their own media. However, if the public is consuming and producing their own media, they're not watching things like ESPN or the Disney Channel. So everyday these corporations are fighting to limit the public's control over the media. Some have bought these social media sites. Others are fighting to have it regulated in ways that will force the public to watch their own programming. The few unbiased messages and content that we produce and consume on the verge of being taken away from the public, and that is because of these big six.

          The only small solution that the public has in solving this media problem is by producing publicly-funded content through PBS. However, this outlet has barely any funding compared to these big six. What's more is that these media conglomerates are fighting for that to be taken away as well. So what will America look like when we are completely run by the big six after constantly receiving messages and content that are biased. It is up to the public to solve this issue by introducing more diversity into the media industry. Rather than having 6 white men decide all the messages that we receive as a public, we have to inject ourselves into these media distributors and produce better content for others. In addition, we need to support more publicly funded media so that we are receiving some outlet of unbiased messages.

          A great example of one of these publicly funded media is National Public Radio (NPR). NPR is a nonprofit radio organization that funds over 900 radio stations and is played across the United States to 26 million listeners. They produce content about news, arts, music, and other popular genres. This is just a small solution to our current media problem, but with small steps we can overcome the biased messages that we receive from the media.