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Don't take my word for it read this from Trent Lott's homepage: Media Ownership :
Having one huge national media chain dominate both the local print and broadcast sectors of individual markets means less competition and less incentive to serve media consumers and advertisers with quality service at good prices.

Having one huge national media chain dominate both the local print and broadcast sectors of individual markets means less competition and less incentive to serve media consumers and advertisers with quality service at good prices.

Tell me how markets work. In particular, I'm interested in how competition is constraigned over time. Name the companies that have retained virtual monopolies over, say the last 50-75 years in any area. Your concern is over-wrought. Consolidations are beneficial (think Windows) and only last for relatively short periods. Competition assures us of that.

You get no arguement from me on media consolidation - at least in terms of a monolith like Clear Channel in the radio arena. But the proliferation of sources on television (both cable and broadcast) as well as internet-based sources would belie that arguement rather quickly.

Certainly most arguements regarding monopolistic consolidation of the media are specifically pointed at Clear Channel and their gargantuan hold on the radio audience across the nation. There are many - myself included - who feel that the music business has stagnated in most formats, due to the 800-pound Clear Channel gorilla and those other large firms who compete directly with them (Cumulus, Infinity, Cox, Radio One). Most people know that to find truly "new" music, you need to listen to college radio or go onto the internet any more. Until CC can be convinced that they are losing market share, that model won't change. CC (unfortunately) drives radio in this country, and thanks to their massive presense, this position won't change any time soon.

All those things being present, it (CC's massive presense) does not have anything to do with your points regarding news.