The Changing Face of Media Ownership and Control

The internet has changed everything - or at least, I believe the claim has been bandied about here and there. So anyone can bung up a website and start publishing news and comment and can compete with the big ‘boys’ (and big girls in the media? Gosh, is everything gendered?). But now we hear that The Times will start to charge for access to their online editions. So have things really changed that much, or is it more that there has just been a shift in technology and the old patterns of ownership and control still persist in much the same ways? Well, I haven’t got any pat answers to that question, although regular readers will know I’ve often expressed irritation and scepticism at those who rather quickly leap to the conclusion that sociological theories (and some or many, textbooks) are out of date. Read this article from the BBC and see what you think. Are the big media corporations going to maintain their grip on mass communications in the new digital age?