"My Beef With Big Media" by Ted Turner

[TNGTony]

I didn't notice this article posted earlier so I thought I'd link it here and post a couple of passages.

This is a fascinating read. Whether you personally like Mr. Turner or not, he is a shining example of the American Entrepreneur and I value his opinion on these matters. Please read the entire article linked below.

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2004/0407.turner.html

Both [Atlanta and Charlotte UHF TV Station] purchases played a role in revolutionizing television. Both required a streak of independence and a taste for risk. And neither could happen today. In the current climate of consolidation, independent broadcasters simply don't survive for long. That's why we haven't seen a new generation of people like me or even Rupert Murdoch--independent television upstarts who challenge the big boys and force the whole industry to compete and change

In this environment, most independent media firms either get gobbled up by one of the big companies or driven out of business altogether. Yet instead of balancing the rules to give independent broadcasters a fair chance in the market, Washington continues to tilt the playing field to favor the biggest players. Last summer, the FCC passed another round of sweeping pro-consolidation rules that, among other things, further raised the cap on the number of TV stations a company can own.

The loss of independent operators hurts both the media business and its citizen-customers. When the ownership of these firms passes to people under pressure to show quick financial results in order to justify the purchase, the corporate emphasis instantly shifts from taking risks to taking profits. When that happens, quality suffers, localism suffers, and democracy itself suffers.

See ya
Tony

[MikeSoltis]

This was a great article, and it has straightened out my views on the Tedster (Turner, not Nugent).
Some interesting points in the article, read it quick while you still can !!!

[Greg Bimson]

Although he is a media mogul, Turner has forgotten the one thing in life that is always constant: things change!

There has been consolidation in every single industry since the beginning of time. Over the past five years, we've seen mergers in banking, finance, utilities, internet companies, automobiles, newspapers, and yes, broadcasting. I am tired of seeing people clamor for "the good old days", when what made them the good old days is because someone pioneered a new way to do things, and it was copied.

Turner pioneered the uplinking of an "independent broadcaster" into a multi-billion dollar industry. If he was so concerned of media consolidation, he should have never merged with Time Warner, let alone AOL.

Practice what you preach, Ted.

[durl]

So did Ted say all these things because his companies were "gobbled up" by a big company?

While I agree that small, independent companies help maintain a healthy balance in the marketplace, it's a fact that larger, more powerful companies will try to buy the competition or force it out altogether. Small companies can and do survive and grow in our economic environment IF they do their business right. As far as the media is concerned I don't see how current FCC policy makes a repeat of Turner's success an impossibility. More difficult perhaps, but not impossible.

Turner's arguments aren't new; the issue of centralized capital has been part of the US economy for 200 years.

[TNGTony]

If you read the article, he is slamming the FCC for continually relaxing the ownership caps and restrictions on the limited media spectrum allowing the consollidation and mergers that otherwise would not have taken place. I Urge people to read the full article before commenting.

See ya
Tony

[Mark Holtz]

An article from Captain Outrageous about how he transferred a barely watched UHF station into a national superstation, and created Chicken News Network that because a news powerhouse in the early 90s? Sure, why not.

Major media consolidation is bad unless you want bland radio beamed from a central satellite feed.

The only thing that Ted forgot is when the local newscasts went from being a public service to profit centers. While I won't say that the local station suck (we have a good variety in the Sacramento market), I still would like San Francisco locals. Yet, the broadcasts won't let me even though I would still subscribe to Sacramento locals, and my mother won't let me "move" and lose the Sacramento locals.