Media ownership policies: Pressures for change and implications

Abstract

We are witnessing a wholesale restructuring of media ownership statutes throughout the world. It is difficult to think of a single developed or developing country which over the last 10 years has not introduced at least one change – and in many cases more – in its media ownership regimes. The direction is almost entirely one-way: towards a more liberal and deregulated environment which allows for more conglomeration of media companies, greater flexibility in foreign ownership, and fewer restrictions on ownership across different media. I want to address two important aspects of this worldwide phenomenon: first, why it is happening and the main forces driving these changes; and second, the implications for a free press, for diversity, and for journalism.