Murdoch’s Dow Jones Takeover: A Dark Day for Democracy
Yesterday, Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. sealed the deal on the $5 billion dollar buyout of Dow Jones — a powerful reminder of how media consolidation is constantly eroding the foundational structures of our democracy.
Learn more about Murdoch’s takeover
America’s founders understood that a truly free press — enlivened by diverse perspectives and beholden to the public interest — is the keystone to a flourishing democracy. With the purchase of the Dow Jones Co. and its flagship Wall Street Journal another vital voice is brought under the umbrella of one conglomerate — and one man — that already controls too much of what Americans see, hear and read every day.
| When is Enough Enough? |
Since Rupert Murdoch’s offer was made public, volumes have been written on what this historic deal might mean to journalism in America. A fair bit of the criticism and concern surrounding News Corp.’s bid for Dow Jones has focused on Murdoch himself and his well-documented penchant for employing his media outlets to advance his personal and business interests.
Above all, we ought to be most concerned with the health of our media system. Media consolidation, by its nature, diminishes the diversity of voices represented in our media or with access to the airwaves. With fewer points of view available, those select few with an outlet increase their capacity to shape public opinion, politics and daily life. It is easy to make Murdoch a target, but this deal is not about one man so much as it is about a whole system of policies that creates a rich media but a poor democracy.
Some may say we should just let the market take its course. But today’s media system isn’t simply the evolutionary result of “market forces at work.” It’s the result of policies created by Congress and enforced by the FCC. Without those policies, Murdoch couldn’t have built his media empire. Only by restoring public input in the policymaking process, can we reverse this trend and make America’s media a healthier place where a marketplace of ideas and the free market can co-exist.
We can’t change Rupert Murdoch. But we can change the policies that allow companies like News Corp. to control our media. We can create new policies that foster the kind of diverse, accessible and vibrant media that our country’s founders imagined and our democracy needs.
For more information on the Murdoch takeover, visit www.freepress.net/Murdoch
This has nothing to do with politics or loss of freedom. This is about buying Boardwalk, Baltic Avenue and Park Place.
It was once called free enterprise, but anyway, welcome to the big spenders club.
August 2nd, 2007 at 9:31 am