By Renee Hobbs
Media Literacy IN ACTION
Questioning the Media
2nd
Edition
CHAPTER 10
how do MEDIA COMPANIES MAKE MONEY?
Learning Outcomes
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Examine the changing nature of the workplace for the freelancers and professionals who work in media industries
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Appreciate the different economics models that shape how consumers support media industries
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Consider how regulations and business practices aim to advance both freedom of information and market competition
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Reflect on the benefits and drawbacks of media regulations as they influence workers, consumers, and society
The value of creative labor is shaped by business practices and government regulation
MEDIA LITERACY LEARNING MODEL
KEY IDEAS FROM CHAPTER 10
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Freelancers, entrepreneurs, and professionals who work in media industries all contribute to society, even though the rise of generative AI may change the jobs of the future.
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In market societies, consumers support media industries directly with product purchases or indirectly through the monetization of their attention.
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Although subscription-based revenue models are increasing in dominance, consumers are not generally aware of how much money they spend on digital media products and services.
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In the U.S., media systems are shaped by business regulation, including the First Amendment, broadcast and telecommunications regulation, net neutrality, and anti-trust media ownership rules.
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Journalists around the world face threats from powerful people who want to control what the public knows about them.
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Around the world, countries have different approaches to media regulation that reflect and embody power relationships between politicians, media industries, and other elites.
SUPER SUNDAY GRAPHIC
I'M AN ORIGINAL CATCHPHRASE
Compare and Contrast
Information Sources about a Media Company
Select a media or technology company of interest to you. It might be a company whose products and services you use every day or a company that you have acquired an interest in as a result of reading this book.
Use the internet to find two different types of sources:
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• The company’s annual report, which is how the company describes its successes to its stockholders
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• At least three independent news stories about the company over the same 12-month period
as the annual report
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Construct a Venn diagram using PowerPoint or another digital tool to compare and contrast the information sources by considering these questions:​
• What key ideas and information are presented in both the annual report and news coverage?
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• What information and stories were presented in news media that were not highly visible inthe annual report?
• What information was presented in the annual report that was not in news coverage?
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You can post using the #MLAction hashtag to share your published work with a global communityof media literacy learners.
HOW SHOULD PEOPLE PAY FOR MEDIA? ​​
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With a discussion partner, consider the advantages and disadvantages of the three different revenue models you learned about in this chapter. As you analyze these different economic models, be sure to consider the different points of view of the media creator, the consumer, and society.
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After discussion and analysis, reflect on what you have learned about media economics by considering these questions as you plan a a brief oral response:
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• What are the advantages and disadvantages of the different ways of paying for mass and digital media?
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• Which approaches are best and worst for creators, consumers, and society as a whole?
• If you could change something about how you pay for media, what would it be?
Click on Join the Conversation to contribute your ideas in a brief oral presentation. You can also view and respond to comments of other people who have offered thoughtful reflections on the topic of media economics.
SUBMIT A COMMENT TO THE FCC
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One in 4 people in the U.S. are unsatisfied with their internet service provider or their mobile phone service. Some are not sure if the cost of the devices or services is worth what they pay for it. Plus, 74% of Americans say they've had product or service problem in the past year.
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At the Consumer Complaints Center, people can file complaints and share their experiences with their phone company, internet service provider, or other media company. If you’ve had a bad experience with your cell phone provider, take time to write a complaint. If you’re happy with your service, you can tell your story to the FCC, too. Or you can interview someone who has had a bad experience and tell their story.
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Check out the FCC Facebook page. Federal agencies depend on feedback from citizens in order to fulfil their regulatory obligations. Visit the FCC website to learn more
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Learn more about how Dallas Smythe influenced media literacy educators, researchers & activists
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DALLAS SMYTHE
"People are subject to relentless pressures from Consciousness Industry; they are besieged with an avalanche of consumer goods and services; they are themselves produced as (audience) commodities; they reproduce their own lives and energies as damaged and in commodity form. But people are by no means passive or powerless. People do resist the powerful and manifold pressures of capital as best they can.”
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--Dallas Smythe, 1981