It seems liberals have a problem with the growing "ConservativeMedia."
One of their principle areas of complaint seems to be ClearChannel Communications.
Clear Channel Communications is the national syndicate ofconservative programs such as Rush Limbaugh, Dr. Laura and GlennBeck. They own many radio stations across the country, and have alarge portion of many outdoor advertising markets. They own a fewtelevision stations and other media and entertainment outlets.
Clear Channel is a very large corporation. They sell advertisingto a wide array of corporations and individuals who want to supporttheir products. Their products are consumed by millions of peopleevery day. Clear Channel got so large and dominant by choosing amarket, expanding and doing well in it.
But liberals always seem to see a conspiracy where there isnone. Last spring, as Glenn Beck hosted Rallies for America,national media outlets played up the nonexistent role of ClearChannel in these rallies. As many Americans were showing theirsupport for our president and our troops, The New York Times wastrying to skew them into a Clear Channel pep rally.
Let's assume that Clear Channel really is a Conservativemouthpiece. Surely there must be a balancing force in the mediaworld?
There is, in the form of Viacom International.
Viacom is the owner of some of America's hottest media outlets.They are an umbrella corporation that owns: MTV, VH1, CBS, CMT,UPN, Spike TV, Paramount Pictures, Blockbuster Video, Showtime, TVLand, Nickelodeon, BET, Infinity Broadcasting and Simon andSchuster Publishing.
Personally, I find this conglomeration of entities to be farmore dangerous than anything Clear Channel could ever compile --rallies or not.
If you take stock of the influence Viacom has in our society,they can -- and do -- manipulate our cultural forces on a continualbasis.
Children in today's society are subjected to Viacom on a dailybasis, whether it's their cartoons on Nickelodeon, their favoritevideos on one of the video networks or their schoolbooks publishedby Simon and Schuster. If children (or anyone else for that matter)were to be subjected to Rush Limbaugh and his conservative views,it would have to be through someone's choice on the radio dial.
Do I think Viacom is using its status as a media conglomeratefor evil? No.
However, I don't think enough attention is paid to the influenceViacom does have. MTV has single-handedly developed a new marketsegment that researchers refer to as the "Midriff," or adolescentgirls with buying power who look up to the likes of Britney Spearsand Jessica Simpson.
The list is long and uninteresting: Dan Rather's unabashedliberalism, the slanderous "Reagans" biopic, Simon and Schusterrewriting some primary school history books and InfinityBroadcasting's dominance in the radio market. Any of these and allof these should be reason for concern, but liberals seem fixated onClear Channel.
Viacom has earned its place as a market leader; I don't blamethem for that. But the next time someone decries Clear Channel,remember Viacom and its place in today's media environment.
Write to Russell at rlg@temporalfront.com
visit www.temporalfront.com
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