Mass Media in the United States

Overview

• Types of mass media in the U.S.: television, radio, cinema, newspapers, magazines, websites.
• Strong music industry; New York City and Los Angeles are media epicenters.

Media Ownership & Corporate Influence

• Most media entities controlled by large for-profit corporations.
• Revenue from advertising, subscriptions, and sale of copyrighted material.
• Passage of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 led to deregulation, mega-mergers, and media ownership concentration.
• Critics argue this concentration reduces diversity and localism in media.

Press Freedom

• Reporters Without Borders ranked the U.S. 55th out of 180 countries in press freedom in 2023.
• Low public trust: 11% trust TV news, 16% trust newspapers.

Print Media

• Decline in newspaper influence; no national paper.
• Major newspapers: The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today.
• Local newspapers exist in major metropolitan areas, often supported by advertising revenue.
• Major non-profit investigative journalism organizations emerged as traditional media declined.

Radio

• Broadcasts in FM and AM bands; dominated by commercial stations.
• Public radio represented by National Public Radio (NPR).
• Rise of satellite radio; Sirius XM formed from a merger.
• Internet radio and digital streaming services like Pandora and Spotify are popular.

Television

• Nearly all households have at least one TV.
• Four major broadcast networks: NBC, CBS, ABC, Fox.
• Spanish-language networks: Univision, Telemundo.
• Major satellite and cable providers: DirecTV, Dish Network, Comcast, Charter Communications.

Film Industry

• Powerful and successful industry; important to the U.S. economy.
• Rise of home video market in the 1980s-1990s.
• Digital distribution via streaming services has grown, outpacing DVD/Blu-ray sales.

Video Games

• Largest video game industry globally in terms of employees.
• Significant revenue, with forecasts reaching $230 billion by 2022.

Internet & Streaming

• Internet as a medium for news delivery; websites generate revenue through ads and subscriptions.
• Popular websites include Google, Netflix, Facebook, Amazon, and Spotify.
• Streaming services such as Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, and Amazon Prime Video are prominent.
• The rise of virtual MVPDs offering live TV streaming at lower costs.

Media Conglomerates

• Major film studios part of larger corporate conglomerates.
• Content reuse across different platforms and media types.
• Competition to adapt books and independent films into media franchises.

Additional Resources

• List of related topics, books, and articles for further reading.