Media Literacy Final Project - Paper



Anne Dayton

Media Literacy

CORCOM 130 Fall 2006 CE1 Section 01 OL

Final Project

December 10, 2006

Media Organizations:

Control in the top Ten (10) US Media Markets and Societal Impacts

Introduction

This paper will discuss the largest media organizations/empires in the U.S.; identify their ownership of mass media (daily newsprint, broadcast TV stations and broadcast radio stations) in the top ten (10) markets in the U.S. and the societal impacts in the U.S. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and Nielsen Media Research define the top ten markets. The FCC is “an independent United States government agency” and “charged with regulating interstate and international communications by radio, television, wire, satellite and cable.” () FCC commissioners are appointed by the President of the United States and confirmed by Congress. Nielsen Media Research identifies itself as a “pioneer and industry leader in audience measurement” in television. () This paper will not address the cable TV or the motion picture studio industries.

The top ten (10) Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) defined by the FCC are:

|1. |Los Angeles-Long Beach, CA |

|2. |New York, NY |

|3. |Chicago, IL Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area (PMSA) |

|4. |Philadelphia, PA/NJ |

|5. |Washington DC-MD-VA-WV |

|6. |Detroit, MI |

|7. |Houston, TX |

|8. |Atlanta, GA |

|9. |Dallas, TX |

|10. |Boston, MA-NH |

These top ten MSAs correspond almost identically to the top 10 Designated Market Areas (DMAs) as defined by Nielsen Media Research for television household estimates. The difference is that Nielsen includes the San Francisco Bay Area as number six (6) in the market and does not include Detroit, Michigan. Producers of broadcast radio, broadcast TV and newspapers use DMAs to identify major target markets and determine market share and reach. However, since the FCC is the organization responsible for legislating media ownership rules and regulations of broadcast television and radio, and they also regulate cross-ownership of newspaper and broadcast television and radio (), the focus in this paper will be on the FCC top ten (10) markets.

|RANK |Designated Market Area (DMA) |TV Homes |

|1 |New York |7,375,530 |

|2 |Los Angeles |5,536,430 |

|3 |Chicago |3,430,790 |

|4 |Philadelphia |2,925,560 |

|5 |Boston (Manchester) |2,375,310 |

|6 |San Francisco-Oak-San Jose |2,355,740 |

|7 |Dallas-Ft. Worth |2,336,140 |

|8 |Washington, DC (Hagrstwn) |2,252,550 |

|9 |Atlanta |2,097,220 |

|10 |Houston |1,938,670 |

Nielsen Media Research Local Universe Estimates* (US) *Estimates used throughout the 2005-2006 television season which starts on September 24, 2005 ()

This paper presents overall ownership by media organization and dominance by media type within the top ten (10) U.S. markets. Examples of monopolistic behavior, through media ownership or partnership agreements are presented and the impacts to U.S. society are discussed. Both publicly traded and privately held organizations are included.

Media Companies in the U.S.

The top eight (8) media organizations in the world by size are: General Electric (NBC Universal), TimeWarner, Walt Disney (ABC Television and ABC Radio), Vivendi Universal, News Corp (Fox Network), Bertelsmann AG, CBS Corporation and Viacom. () Six (6) of the top eight (8) are headquartered in the U.S., including General Electric (NBC Universal), TimeWarner, Walt Disney (ABC Television and ABC Radio), News Corp (Fox Network), CBS Corporation and Viacom. The other large companies who own and control significant media properties in the top ten (10) U.S. markets include Clear Channel Communications, Cox Enterprises Inc., Gannett, Hearst Corporation and the Tribune Company.

General Electric is the parent company of NBC Universal, a division that focuses on TV networks, TV and film production and distribution, and theme parks. “The NBC Universal Television Stations division comprises 10 NBC television stations in major U.S. television markets, along with 15 Telemundo stations and one independent Spanish-language television station. Together, these stations cover more than 30% of the nation's viewing households, and annually generate nearly $2 billion in revenue from advertising sales.” () It has “station duopolies” with both English and Spanish language stations in “six of the nation’s top 20 markets.” () These duopolies exist in NYC, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Dallas/Fort Worth and Miami, four (4) of these markets are among the top ten (10) in the U.S.

TimeWarner is a large publicly owned media company comprised of television, film and Internet properties with some of the largest reach into the US market, although not through daily newspapers, broadcast TV or broadcast radio. They produce an extensive array of cable broadcast news and entertainment through the Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. and approximately 145 magazine titles in the U.S. through their Time, Inc. division ( and respectively) Cable News Network (CNN), “has the largest news operation among the three cable news channels.” (Project for Excellence in Journalism, ) The three largest are CNN, the Fox News Channel (News Corporation) and MSNBC.

Cox Enterprises, Inc. is a conglomeration of newspaper, radio and television properties. Privately held, Cox owns seventeen (17) daily newspapers, fifteen (15) television stations and is a major presence in broadcast radio. Cox Radio “owns, operates or provides sales and marketing services to 80 stations in 18 markets…15 of its 18 markets, Cox Radio, Inc. operates three or more stations.” ( and )

The top publicly traded newspaper companies include Gannett, McClatchy, Tribune, Dow Jones, NY Times and Lee Enterprises. The privately held Hearst Corporation owns significant newspaper properties, including the Houston Chronicle, in addition to 28 television stations, reaching approximately 18 percent of US households. ()

Regulations propel consolidation in the U.S.

Driven by lax FCC regulations and the increasing drive for revenue and profits of the media organizations, consolidation within the media industry continues unabated. The Telecommunications Act of 1996 provided for new regulations regarding newspaper, radio and television, in addition to telephone communications and the Internet. () Several restrictions regarding radio and television ownership were lifted or loosened, including national ownership percentages of television, the number of radio stations a single company could own and the cross ownership percentage caps. The national ownership cap on commercial radio stations had been set at 40 stations. Some clear results of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 include the creation of radio giants such as CBS Radio (formerly Infinity Broadcasting of Viacom ownership) (154 stations), Citidel Broadcasting (225 stations), Clear Channel Communications Inc. (1,150 stations), Cumulus Media Inc./Cumulus Media Partners (345 stations) and Salem Communications (104 stations). A result of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 - decreased competition and the number of radio station owners dropped from 5,100 in 1996 to 3,800 in 2001. (Common Cause, 2005, p. 10)

FCC regulations continue to allow and promote consolidation. When the FCC voted to loosen media ownership rules in 2003, they were sued in Federal Court by several public interest groups, and in June 2004, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals issued a decision in Prometheus v. FCC (), affirming some of the rules proposed by the FCC and rejecting others. In June 2006, the FCC initiated a new rulemaking proceeding regarding media ownership, including local television and radio ownership limits, and cross ownership limits. (ownership/rules.html) Six public hearings in major cities across the U.S. are scheduled and/or have taken place. “The pressure on the FCC to change the rules is intense. Newspaper publishers want existing rules that block them from purchasing broadcast properties in their newspapers’ markets altered, and medium size and smaller-market TV station owners want to be able to more easily acquire additional properties in a market.” (Teinowitz, I. & Hibberd, J., 2006)

Corporate revenues and profits continued to affect the consolidation of most segments of the media industry in 2005 and 2006. “Through the efficiencies of operation of multiple outlets, or economies of scale, group media companies usually enjoy financial benefits that are not available to single medium operators.” (Howard, 2006, p. 2) This results in less local ownership and less local content, even something the FCC admits. “Economies of scale in program distribution favor non-local content. Simply, given a fixed cost of producing news content, multi-station owners can spread those fixed costs over more stations by distributing the same content across many localities. This content will be non-local for most localities.” (FCC, 2004, p. 2)

On November 16, 2006, Clear Channel Communications, Inc. announced plans to sell “448 of its 1,150 radio stations, all located outside the top 100 U.S. media markets, as well as the company’s 42-station Television Group”, as these properties contributed less than ten percent of the company’s revenue last year. () On the same day, Clear Channel announced a merger with a private equity group, led by Bain Capital Partners, LLC and Thomas H. Lee Partners, L.P.

The result after many years of loosened regulations is the number of daily newspapers has declined, even as the number of U.S. households has increased. In 1990, there were 93,347 U.S. households and 1,611 daily newspapers; in 2002, there were 108,565 households and 1,457 daily newspapers. (Northwestern University Media Management Center, ) The outlook for newspapers in the U.S. is grim, at best. Every week a new article appears forecasting the death of the newspaper and news of layoffs and cuts of editorial staff is found by a simple scan of the local newspaper or a Google® search of the Internet.

Media ownership and control in the top ten U.S. Markets

Disney/ABC owns broadcast radio stations in all top ten (10) U.S. markets in addition to broadcast TV stations in five (5) of the top ten. Clear Channel Communications and Salem Communications both own radio stations in all ten (10) markets. CBS owns TV stations in nine (9) of the top ten markets. News Corporation owns TV stations in six (6) of the top ten markets, while ION Media Networks owns at least one TV station in each of the top ten markets. (Appendix A)

Los Angeles is the largest market for media in the U.S. and one media organization took advantage of loose rules and the FCC allowing exceptions to the rules. “Tribune, Co., for instance, owns the Los Angeles Times and KTLA-TV Channel 5 in the same market, something that the rules prohibit but the FCC has allowed for now.” (Granelli, 2006) On November 13, 2006, a team of Los Angeles entrepreneurs teamed up to bid on the Tribune Company, in an effort to acquire the Los Angeles Times. “Potential buyers have been circling around the newspaper publisher and broadcaster, looking for pieces to bite off as Tribune (TRB) has been stung by advertising and circulation declines at its newspapers and employee turmoil at one of its best-known properties, the Los Angeles Times.” (Wilkerson, D.B. and Spain, W., November 29, 2006, ) Increasing financial pressures have forced the Tribune to put two TV stations up for sale, WCWN-TV in Albany, N.Y. and WLVI-TV in Boston. (Wilkerson, D.B., December 2, 2006, ) CBS dominates broadcast TV and radio in Los Angeles, with two (2) TV stations and seven (7) radio stations. Clear Channel offers ten (10) radio stations in Los Angeles. HHHHThe MediaNews Group, Inc. owns the Los Angeles Newspaper Group, a grouping of eight (8) daily newspapers that “account for nearly one-half of the L.A. DMA's total population, households and retail sales.” ()

In New York City, News Corporation owns a daily newspaper (NY Post) and two (2) broadcast TV stations, while The New York Times Company owns a daily newspaper (New York Times) and two (2) broadcast radio stations. Tribune owns two (2) daily newspapers and a broadcast TV station in New York City. Clear Channel owns five (5) radio stations, while Disney/ABC owns 4 radio stations and one TV station.

In Chicago, the Tribune owns two (2) daily newspapers, two (2) broadcast TV station and a broadcast radio station. Disney/ABC and GE/NBC both own TV stations, Clear Channel owns seven (7) radio stations and Disney/ABC owns four (4) radio stations.

Philadelphia and Detroit have the least competitive newspaper market as each market is served by a partnership that publishes both daily newspapers. “Detroit Newspaper Partnership, L.P. manages the business operations of the Detroit Free Press and The Detroit News, including production, advertising and circulation. Gannett Co, Inc., owner of the Detroit Free Press, is the general partner in the Detroit Newspaper Partnership and MediaNews Group, owner of The Detroit News, is the limited partner.” ()

In Philadelphia, a group of local investors purchased the two daily newspapers in 2006. “Philadelphia Media Holdings was formed in 2006 for the purpose of acquiring the Inquirer, Daily News and related online assets, and is comprised of local Philadelphia-area investors.” () In addition, the Washington Post, a locally owned and operated company, serves Washington, D.C.

In the Atlanta market, Cox Communications Inc. owns a daily newspaper, one broadcast TV station and five (5) broadcast radio stations. Three (3) broadcast radio stations are owned by Disney/ABC and Clear Channel Communications and Salem Communications each own five (5) radio stations.

While the larger media companies have a significant presence in the top ten markets, they also play in the smaller markets as those markets continue to consolidate in ownership as well. Belo owns both two newspapers and a TV station in the Dallas/Fort Worth market, but also focuses on clustering in geographic areas. “Belo’s geographic clustering of media companies, as well as the diversification of media within our clusters, helps us deliver unmatched regional news coverage to our audiences and unique regional marketing opportunities.”

Gannett owns 90 daily newspapers and 23 broadcast TV stations, with a duopoly in Phoenix. McClatchy focuses on smaller markets, but prides itself on publishing the “leading web site in each of its 32 daily newspaper markets”. () McClatchy purchased Knight-Ridder in 2006 to bolster its number of properties. In addition, as the owner of Real Cities, McClatchy controls the “ nation's largest network of local news sites” containing “over 120 web sites and a presence in 20 of the nation's top 25 markets.” () The media companies broadly advertise their leading market reach and marketshare on company websites and company literature. (Appendices D and E)

Media today and societal impacts

Crispin Miller (2002) describes the cultural sway that occurs when entertainment companies are responsible for news delivery; the news becomes yet another version of the entertainment delivered. Described as the “Merchants of Cool” by PBS (), the large companies that control news delivery are also responsible for the music, film, books, sports teams, amusement parks and Internet web sites that define the culture of young teens in the U.S. Journalistic professionals within the industry (Bill Moyers) decry the effect that entertainment has had on the delivery of solid, factual news. “The airwaves and the news columns are now filled with argument, conflict, chatter, speculation, opinion, prediction, gossip, and brawl, all of which are much cheaper, quicker, and easier to produce than the painstakingly gathered, scrupulously checked, meticulously edited journalism of fact: the increasingly old-fashioned kind of work that actually tells people things they need to know.” (Moyers, 2004, p. 91) An examination of 16 news outlets over 20 years by the Project for Excellence in Journalism found “a shift toward lifestyle, celebrity, entertainment and celebrity crime/scandal in the news and away from government and foreign affairs”. (Project for Excellence in Journalism, 1998, p. 1).

The focus of large corporations on media business opportunities and profit is not necessarily a good thing for employees at news outlets or the citizens who rely on the news. “The media acquisitions are driven solely by the prospects of fiscal returns. Industrial giants, such as General Electric and Westinghouse among others, saw business opportunities and moved into the media industry. For them, however, a profit margin of 20 percent or 30 percent is considered too meager. Not concerned with the depth and quality of news, they force outlets to trim their staffs and enact other economies in their operations.” (Klotzer, 2006) Leaving the communications needs of U.S. citizenry in the hands of a few corporate giants threatens free speech, democracy and the ability for those citizens to obtain “access to [a] variety of voices and viewpoints.” ()

While continuing to cut costs and trim staff, newspaper owners are continuing to experience profit in their investments. “Newspaper advertising generates $45 billion a year in revenue, and even after recent declines, the average profit margin of all publicly held newspaper companies is 17% - twice that of the average Fortune 500 firm.” (Rushe, 2006)

Large corporate ownership of media properties translates into a lack of local ownership and in many cases, a lack of minority ownership. “Minorities own just 13 of the 847 “big four” network-affiliated stations, or 1.5 percent of the total.” (Turner and Cooper, 2006, p. 3) Two of the top ten DMAs have television markets where minorities constitute a majority of the population, Los Angeles and Houston, TX. Los Angeles has a minority population of 62%, yet only 18.2% of the TV stations are minority owned; Houston has a minority population of 53%, yet only 7.1% of the TV stations are minority owned. (Turner and Cooper, p. 30) Recognizing that lack of local and minority ownership results in lack of content directed at the local and often minority community, two companies, Univision and Entravision, focus entirely on the Hispanic/Latino market with Spanish language broadcast content and stations.

Media companies are long standing contributors to political campaigns. The Center for Public Integrity () tracks the political contributions of over 300 media companies. “Media Tracker includes campaign contributions to all candidates for Congress and the presidency from 1998 to 2006, money spent lobbying the federal government since 1998, and privately-funded trips for legislators and their aides since 2000. All told, the employees and political action committees of the companies in these information industries spent $486 million on campaign contributions from January 1, 1997 to June 30, 2006.” () Common Cause provides further breakdown of political contributions in a chart in their 2005 report, and finds that eight of the largest media companies and three of the industry trade groups spent more than $400 million since 1997. General Electric/NBC, CBS, Disney/ABC and News Corp were among the top contributors of federal lobbying expenditures in 1998 to 2004. Common Cause, 2005, p. 4)

According to McChesney (2004) media control by large companies and their political action committees and lobbying is undermining independent reporting and damaging to the communication needs of U.S. citizenry and democracy. Phillips in Cohen (2005) cites numerous examples of pressure from corporate owners resulting in journalistic censorship over specific stories or topics.

Conclusion

FCC regulations have contributed to the current media consolidation in the top ten U.S. media markets. The concentration of large companies and their ownership of daily newspapers, broadcast TV and radio stations in the top ten U.S. markets demonstrate that most of these markets are receiving their news through these media giants, rather than locally owned entities. All except for Boston, Washington, D.C. and Detroit demonstrate at least one newspaper/TV station, newspaper/radio station or TV station/radio station duopoly; many have multiple duopolies held by large media companies. Chicago and Atlanta have consolidated ownership in all three formats. In the area of daily newspapers, Philadelphia and Washington D.C. are notable exceptions to large company ownership, with local owners.

Few of the larger media companies focus on one format alone in their portfolio of holdings, most own a combination. (Appendix B) The owners in the top ten markets make large political contributions, and are in a position to influence policy and action regarding telecommunications and future rulemaking by the FCC. None of the large media organizations are minority owned. The top ten markets in the U.S. have not escaped the effects of media consolidation, and as these companies compete for more market share, they will likely continue to be impacted. Unless or until the FCC rules to lower ownership caps and reduce the ability for cross ownership of media properties, every market in the U.S. will continue to see consolidation.

Appendix A: Media properties by city, owner in parentheses

|Geography |MSA Rank (FCC)|DMA Rank |Daily Newspapers |Broadcast TV Stations |Broadcast Radio Stations |

| | |(Nielsen) | | | |

|Los Angeles-Long Beach, CA | | |Los Angeles Times (Tribune) |KCBS-TV (CBS) |KCBS-FM (CBS) |

| |1 |2 |LA Daily News (MediaNews Group) |KCAL-TV (CBS) |KLSX-FM (CBS) |

| | | |Inland Valley Daily Bulletin (MediaNews Group)|KTTV-11 (News Corp) |KTWW-FM (CBS) |

| | | |Pasadena Star News (MediaNews Group) |KCOP-13 (News Corp) |KRFQ-FM (CBS) |

| | | |Long Beach Press Telegram (MediaNews Group) |KTLA-TV (Tribune) |KRTH-FM (CBS) |

| | | |Redlands Daily Facts (MediaNews Group) |WABC-TV (Disney/ABC) |KFWB-AM (CBS) |

| | | |San Gabriel Valley Tribune (MediaNews Group) |KNBC-TV (GE/NBC) |KNX-AM (CBS) |

| | | |San Bernardino Sun (MediaNews Group) |KVEA/KWHY (GE/NBC) Telemundo |KABC (Disney/ABC) |

| | | |Whittier Daily News (MediaNews Group) | |KLOS (Disney/ABC) |

| | | | |ION Media Networks - 1 |KDIS (Disney/ABC) |

| | | | | |KSPN (Disney/ABC) |

| | | | | | |

| | | | | |Clear Channel – 10 |

| | | | | | |

| | | | | |Salem - 6 |

|New York, NY |2 |1 |NY Post (News Corp) |WCBS-TV (CBS) |WQEW-AM (NYT) |

| | | |New York Times (NYT) |WNYW-5 (News Corp) |WQXR-FM (NYT) |

| | | |Newsday (Tribune) |WWOR-TV-9 (News Corp) |WABC (Disney/ABC) |

| | | |AMNewYork (Tribune) |WPIX-TV (Tribune) |WPLJ (Disney/ABC) |

| | | | |WABC-TV (Disney/ABC) |WQEW (Disney/ABC) |

| | | | |WNBC-4 (GE/NBC) |WEVD (Disney/ABC) |

| | | | |WNJU-TV (GE/NBC) Telemundo | |

| | | | | |Clear Channel – 5 |

| | | | |ION Media Networks - 1 | |

| | | | | |Salem - 2 |

|Chicago, IL Primary Metropolitan| | |Chicago Tribune (Tribune) |WBBM-TV (CBS) |WGN-AM (Tribune) |

|Statistical Area (PMSA) |3 |3 |RedEye (Tribune) |WFLD-32 (News Corp) |WMVP (Disney/ABC) |

| | | |Daily Herald (Paddock Publications) |WPWR-TV-50 (News Corp) |WLS (Disney/ABC) |

| | | |Chicago Sun Times (Sun-Times News Group) |WGN-TV (Tribune) |WZZN (Disney/ABC) |

| | | | |CLTV (Tribune) |WRDZ (Disney/ABC) |

| | | | |WLS-TV (Disney/ABC) | |

| | | | |WMAQ-5 (GE/NBC) |Clear Channel – 7 |

| | | | |WMNS-TV (GE/NBC) Telemundo | |

| | | | |ION Media Networks -1 |Salem - 2 |

|Philadelphia, PA/NJ |4 |4 |Philadelphia Inquirer |KYW-TV (CBS) |WWJZ (Disney/ABC) |

| | | |Philadelphia Daily News |KPSG-TV (CBS) | |

| | | |(Both – Philadelphia Media Holdings L.L.C.) |WTXF-TV-29 (News Corp) |Clear Channel – 6 |

| | | | |WPVI-TV (Disney/ABC) | |

| | | | |WCAU-10 (GE/NBC) |Salem - 2 |

| | | | |ION Media Networks - 1 | |

|Washington DC-MD-VA-WV |5 |8 |The Washington Post (Wash Post) |WJZ-TV (CBS) |WBAL-AM (Hearst) |

| | | |The Washington Times (News World |WUSA-TV (Gannett) |WIYY-FM (Hearst) |

| | | |Communications) |WRC-4 (GE/NBC) |WMAL (Disney/ABC) |

| | | | |ION Media Networks - 2 |WJZW (Disney/ABC) |

| | | | | |WRQX (Disney/ABC) |

| | | | | |Clear Channel – 8 |

| | | | | |Salem - 2 |

|Detroit, MI |6 |11 |Detroit Free Press |WJBK-2 (News Corp) |WDRQ (Disney/ABC) |

| | | |The Detroit News |WWJ-TV (CBS) |WJR (Disney/ABC) |

| | | |(Both – Detroit Newspaper Partnership, LP, |WKBD-TV (CBS) |WDVD (Disney/ABC) |

| | | |partnership between Gannett and MediaNews |WDIV-TV (Wash Post) |Clear Channel – 7 |

| | | |Group) |ION Media Networks - 1 |Salem - 2 |

|Houston, TX |7 |10 |Houston Chronicle (Hearst) |KHOU-TV (Belo) |KHPT-FM (Cox) |

| | | | |KRPC-TV (Wash Post) |KKBQ-FM (Cox) |

| | | | |WTRK-TV (Disney/ABC) |KLDE-FM (Cox) |

| | | | |KTMD (GE/NBC) Telemundo |KTHT-FM (Cox) |

| | | | |ION Media Networks - 1 |KMIC (Disney/ABC) |

| | | | | |Clear Channel – 8 |

| | | | | |Salem – 3 |

| | | | | |Cumulus - 3 |

|Atlanta, GA |8 |9 |Atlanta Journal Constitution |WUPA-TV (CBS) |WALR-FM (Cox) |

| | | |(Cox) |WSB-TV (Cox) |WBTS-FM (Cox) |

| | | | |WXIA-TV (Gannett) |WSM-AM (Cox) |

| | | | |ION Media Networks - 1 |WSB-FM (Cox) |

| | | | | |WSRV-FM (Cox) |

| | | | | |WKHX (Disney/ABC) |

| | | | | |WYAY (Disney/ABC) |

| | | | | |WDWD (Disney/ABC) |

| | | | | |Clear Channel – 5 |

| | | | | |Salem – 5 |

| | | | | |Cumulus - 2 |

|Dallas/Fort Worth, TX |9 |7 |Dallas Morning News (Belo) |KTVT-TV (CBS) |WBAP (Disney/ABC) |

| | | |Fort Worth Star-Telegram (McClatchy) |KTXA-TV (CBS) |KSCS (Disney/ABC) |

| | | |Denton Record-Chronicle (Belo) |WFAA-TV (Belo) |KMEO (Disney/ABC) |

| | | | |KXAS-5 (GE/NBC) |KESN (Disney/ABC) |

| | | | |KXTX (GE/NBC) Telemundo |KMKI (Disney/ABC) |

| | | | |ION Media Networks – 1 |Clear Channel – 5 |

| | | | | |Salem – 3 |

| | | | | |Cumulus - 4 |

|Boston, MA-NH |10 |5 |Boston Globe (NYT) |WBZ-TV (CBS) |WMKI (Disney/ABC) |

| | | |Boston Herald (Herald Media) |WSBK-TV (CBS) |Clear Channel – 4 |

| | | | |WFXT-25 (News Corp) |Salem – 3 |

| | | | |WLVI-TV (Tribune) |Entercom - 5 |

| | | | |WCVB-TV (Hearst) | |

| | | | |WMUR-TV (Hearst) | |

| | | | |ION Media Networks - 3 | |

Appendix B: Media company statistics

|Company |# Daily U.S. Newspapers |# Broadcast TV Stations (VHF or UHF) |# of Broadcast Radio Stations |Annual Revenue (parent company) |

|Belo Corporation |4 |19 |0 |$1.5 Billion |

|CBS Corporation |0 |39 |154 |$14.3 Billion |

|Clear Channel Communications |0 |42 |1,150 |$6.61 Billion |

|Cox Enterprises, Inc. |17 |15 |80 |$12 Billion |

|Disney (ABC) |0 |10 |72 |$31 Billion |

|Gannett |90 |23 |0 |$7.6 Billion |

|GE (NBC) |0 |38 |0 |$149.7 Billion |

|Hearst Corporation |12 |28 |2 |N/A – privately held |

|ION Media Networks (formerly Paxson) |0 |60 |0 |N/A |

|Lee Enterprises |56 |0 |0 |$1.13 Billion |

|The McClatchy Company |32 |0 |0 |$1.163 Billion |

|MediaNews Group |54 |1 |4 |N/A – privately held |

|News Corporation |1 |37 |0 |$26 Billion |

|The New York Times Company |17 |9 |2 |$3.4 Billion |

|Philadelphia Media Holdings L.L.C |2 |0 |0 |N/A |

|Saga Communications |0 |8 |76 |$140 Million |

|Tribune Company |11 |25 |1 |$5.6 Billion |

|The Washington Post Company |1 |6 |0 |$3.55 Billion |

Sources:

• Company websites, Columbia Journalism Review “Who Owns What” website ()

• Free Press “Who Owns the Media” website ()

• Center for Public Integrity “Media Tracker” ().

Where ownership and market data conflicted among these sources, company websites were used.

Appendix C: Radio Station Ownership

|Company |Number of Radio Stations Owned |

|Belo Corporation |0 |

|CBS Radio |154 |

|Citidel Broadcasting |225 |

|Clear Channel |1,150 |

|Cox Communications, Inc. |78 |

|Cumulus Media Inc./Cumulus Media Partners |345 |

|Detroit Newspaper Partnership, L.P. |0 |

|Disney/ABC |72 |

|Emmis Communications |25 |

|Entercom |103 |

|Hearst |2 |

|Lee Enterprises |0 |

|MediaNews Group |4 |

|New York Times Company |2 |

|News Corporation |0 |

|Philadelphia Media Holdings L.L.C |0 |

|Regent Communications |74 |

|Saga Communications, Inc. |76 |

|Salem Communications |104 |

|Tribune Company |1 |

|Washington Post Company |0 |

Sources: Company websites

Appendix D: Newspaper Circulation Reach within DMA (Adult Population)

|City – Newspaper - Owner |Average Daily % Reach |Average Sunday % Reach |

|LA – LA Times - Tribune |52% |59% |

|LA – LA Newspaper Group – MediaNews Group |+50% |+50% |

|NYC – NY Post – News Corporation |n/a |n/a |

|NYC – New York Times – The New York Times Company | n/a |n/a |

|NYC – Newsday -Tribune |37% |37% |

|Chicago – Tribune |25% |38% |

|Phila – Inquirer – Phila Media Holdings L.L.C. |17.67% |35.89% |

|Phila – Daily News – Phila Media Holdings L.L.C. |6.33% |n/a |

|Washington DC – Post – Wash Post Co |51% |65% |

|Detroit – Combined Detroit Free Press/The Detroit News – Detroit Newspaper |54% |56% |

|Partnership, LP | | |

|Houston – Houston Chronicle – Hearst |32% |43% |

|Atlanta – Atlanta Journal Constitution - Cox |57% |69% |

|Dallas/Fort Worth, TX – Dallas Morning News - Belo |33% |47% |

|Dallas/Fort Worth, TX, - Fort Worth Star-Telegram - McClatchy |33% |48% |

|Boston – Boston Globe - NYT |25% |37% |

|Boston – Boston Herald (Full Herald Media – all papers) – Herald Media Inc. |47% |n/a |

Sources: each newspaper’s respective Circulation/Audience/Readership statistics and the Audit Bureau of Circulations ()

Appendix E: Media Company Market Share Claims

• Belo’s Newspaper Group consists of “daily newspapers with a combined readership of more than two million people and 19 television stations reaching 14 percent of U.S. television households.” ()

• “Clear Channel Communications owns just 9% of U.S. radio stations and represents only 18% of the industry’s revenue.” ()

• “In 15 of our 18 markets, Cox operates three or more stations.” ()

• Gannett “owns and operates 23 television stations, which cover 18.05 percent of the USA and have a market reach of 20.1 million households.” ()

• “Hearst Corporation’s 28 TV Stations Reaching About 18 Percent of U.S. TV Households” ()

• ION Media Networks: “Upon completion of the pending acquisition and sale transactions noted in the table, we will own and operate 60 full-power stations, including stations reaching all of the top 20 U.S. markets and 40 of the top 50 markets.” ()

• Tribune Broadcasting “owns and operates 25 major-market television stations and reaches more than 80 percent of U.S. television households.” ()

• Tribune “is the nation’s second-largest newspaper publisher in terms of revenue and No. 3 in total circulation.” ()

Reference/Sources

Chris, C. (2006). Can You Repeat That? Patterns of Media Ownership and the “Repurposing” Trend. The Communication Review, 9: 63–84, 2006 Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC ISSN 1071-4421 print / 1547-7487 online DOI: 10.1080/10714420500500943

Cohen, E. D., Editor. (2005). News Incorporated: Corporate media ownership and its threat to democracy; Prometheus Books, Amherst, NY.

Federal Communications Commission, (2004). Do Local Owners Deliver More Localism? Some Evidence From Local Broadcast News, Working Paper, June 17, 2004, Retrieved from the FCC website.

Graham, D.E. (2006) The Washington Post Company, Mid-Year Media Review, presented June 20, 2006 in New York, Retrieved from The Washington Post Company website

Granelli, J.S. (2006). California and the West; Consolidation in Media Is Called Stifling; Hollywood workers and others at an FCC hearing decry the effects of relaxed rules and say local ownership is key.  Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, Calif.: Oct 4, 2006. pg. C.2, Retrieved through Proquest, Saturday, November 18, 2006.

Howard, H.H. Television Station Ownership in the United States: A Comprehensive Study (1940-2005). Journalism and Communications Monographs; Spring2006, Vol. 8 Issue 1, p1-86, 86 p.

Klotzer, C. L. (2006) Media mergers, acquisitions accelerate, St. Louis Journalism Review, Apr2006, Vol. 36 Issue 285, p25-26, 2p; (AN 20608781)

McChesney, R.W. (2004). Welcome to Havana, Mr. Corleone: Issues of media ownership and control, Pacific Journalism Review, Sep2004, Vol. 10 Issue 2, p20-31, 12p; (AN 14844504)

Miller, M.C. (2002). What’s Wrong With This Picture, The Nation, retrieved electronically on November 12, 2006,

Moyers, B. (2004). Moyers on America: A Journalist and His Times, The New Press, New York, New York.

Project for Excellence in Journalism, March 6, 1998, “Changing Definition of News”, Retrieved electronically,

Rushe, D. (2006) Super-rich queue up to buy trophy US papers, Times Online, December 03, 2006, retrieved online December 3, 2006

Rutenberg, J. (2002). Fewer Media Owners, More Media Choices. New York Times (Late Edition (East Coast)). Dec 2, 2002. pg. C.1

Schatz, A.  (2006) Media Ownership Rules Reviewed, And Tense Fight Is Likely Brewing, Wall Street Journal. (Eastern edition). New York, N.Y.: Oct 4, 2006. pg. B.2,

Teinowitz, I., & Hibberd, J. (2006). Ownership Gets an Airing in L.A. Television Week, 25(37), 15-15. Retrieved Saturday, November 18, 2006 from the Academic Search Premier database.

Turner, D.S. and Cooper, M. (2006). Out of The Picture: Minority & Female TV Station Ownership in the United States, Free Press, , retrieved from

Turner, T. (2003). Monopoly or Democracy?. The Washington Post, Washington, D.C., May 30, 2003. pg. A.23

Turner, T. (2004). My Beef With Big Media, Washington Monthly, Washington D.C., July/August 2004,

Wexler, C.V. (Writer) and Boyle, M. (Editor). (2005). The Fallout From the Telecommunications Act of 1996: Unintended Consequences and Lessons Learned, Common Cause Education Fund. Washington, D.C. May 9, 2005

Wilkerson, D.B. (2006) Moguls drawn to papers as soapboxes, cash cows, MarketWatch, Chicago, December 2, 2006, Retrieved on December 3, 2006. ()

Wilkerson, D.B. and Spain, W. (2006) Tribune pushes pack review deadline, Analysts: Bids for company don’t offer enough of a premium, MarketWatch, Chicago, November 29, 2006, Retrieved on December 3, 2006. ()

Website Sources:

Arbitron,

Audit Bureau of Circulations, Reader profile,

CBS Broadcasting, ,

Center for Public Integrity,

Center for Public Integrity, Well Connected

Clear Channel Communications, Inc., ,

Clear Channel Communications, Katz Media Group Radio Resource Center

Columbia Journalism Review, Who Owns What,

Cox Enterprises, Inc., including Cox newspapers, radio and TV ()

Federal Communications Commission (FCC), ,

Federal Communications Commission, Cross Ownership,

Free Press, ,

Hearst Corporation,

ION Media Networks,

Lee Enterprises,

McClatchy,

McClatchy, Real Cities Network

NBC Universal overview:

Nielsen Media Research, ,

Northwestern University Media Management Center, Media Infocenter, ,

PBS, Merchants of Cool,

Philadelphia Media Holdings, L.L.C.,

Project for Excellence in Journalism; State of the News Media: and

Tribune Company, ,

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