And then there were 5..

(Chart Source: "The Great Media Monopoly"... Click on the chart to make it large enough to read.)

One of the reasons the idea of independent news sources appeals to me is the fact that in 1983, when I was a mere 9 years old, there were 50 corporations that controlled the majority of the media in the United States. 10 years down the road, this number dwindled down to fewer than a dozen corporations. Flash forward to 2004, and there are only 5 corporations that control the majority of American media: Viacom, AOL/Time Warner, News Corp, Clear Channel, and Disney.

Today, these same 5 corporations are holding onto the media with strong hands.

For more information on this...well outrageous...issue, begin with:

• ePluribus Media's blog entry, "Media Consolidation -- a Historical Perspective"

• Truth in Our Time's blog entry, "The Great Media Monopoly"

• The Media Channel.org's website

A Database of Independent News Websites?

David Westphal, the Washington editor of McClatchy Newspapers (the 2nd-largest newspaper company in the U.S.) and the Executive in Residence for USC's Annenberg School for Communication blogged today about building a database that features independent news websites.

Actually, he's been regularly blogging about the emergence and viability of independent news websites (both for-profit and non-profit) since October of this year.

For his series on independent news sites, check out this link.

I'm going to spend some more time reading up on his posts some more, but just to point out some of the independent news websites that he's featured so far, maybe you'd like to take a look at:

• Quincy News (Quincy, IL): 8 month old site run by Bob Gough, who also has been blogging since the inception of Quincy News about the process of running the news site and other topics of interest.
• Ann Arbor Chronicle (Ann Arbor, MI): 3 month old site run by a wife and husband team, Mary Morgan and David Askins
• Voice of San Diego (San Diego, CA): 4 years old, created by Buzz Woolley, a San Diego businessman
• MinnPost (Minneapolis, MN): Founded in 2007, many of writers and managerial staff are highly respected members of the journalism community--Wikipedia covers the MinnPost quite thoroughly: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MinnPost
• St. Louis Beacon (St. Louis, MO): Appears to be about 6 months old (become a Facebook Fan of the St. Louis Beacon at: http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-St-Louis-Beacon/14091702194)
• ChiTown Daily News (Chicago, IL): 3 years old (actually, on Facebook, you can RSVP for the 3 year birthday party that is taking place today)...Features both professional and citizen journalists (Join the ChiTown Daily News Facebook Group at http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=47692979807#/group.php?gid=5926931697 or follow it's Twitter Feed at http://twitter.com/ChiTownDaily)
• The Batavian (Batavia County and Genesee County, NY): 7 months old, launched by Gatehouse Media in May of 2008, "a fascinating example of what can happen when a newspaper company throws the old rules out the window... [that] lets any registered reader contribute posts, and it treats all registered readers as equals...This isn't "traditional" journalism -- it's better..." (Source: Fighting 29th.com)
• Pasadena Now (Pasadena, CA): 3 years old, for a close look at the genesis and evolution of Pasadena Now, check out the blog posts by Eye Level Pasadena.
• Pegasus News (Dallas/Fort Worth, TX): 2 years old, for press releases that feature Pegasus News, check out: http://www.pegasusnews.com/pressroom/
• NewcastleNOW.org (New Castle, NY): 1 year old, the staff includes the editor, managing editor (and photographer), publisher (and Webmaster), advertising executive, 2 freelancers and 100 citizen journalists.
• The Forum (Deerfield, NH): 3 years old, an all volunteer staff: "We are volunteers of all ages. We are long-term residents and newcomers, employed and retired, politically active and apolitical, churchgoers and atheists. What unites us is our dedication to creating a means for open communication with and about our community."
• YubaNet.com (Nevada City, CA): 9 years old, "YubaNet was born at the outbreak of the September 1999 Pendola wildfire in the foothills of Yuba County," (Source: Iconocast.com)
• Texas Watchdog (Houston, TX): 4 months old, "Texas Watchdog is a news Web site and training center that scrutinizes the actions of government agencies, bureaucracies and politicians in Texas...Texas Watchdog will serve as a government watchdog and training center where reporters, bloggers and activists of any stripe will learn how to uncover waste, fraud and corruption in state and local governments. "
• The Dagger (Baltimore, MD) 1 year old, "What began as an experiment, a test case for what might happen when we distill years of conversation into published material, has turned into something real. We have become a living, breathing, kicking, screaming community of readers and writers no longer content to simply watch as the world turns."
• OurVarsity.com (Gwinnett County, GA): 4 months old, formed by Josh Kendall and Carter Strickland, OurVarsity.com is "an online community for high school athletes/students/parents in Gwinnett County, Georgia (18 high schools, one million overall population)...Our idea has been to reach into the high school market by building an online community that not only provides news but allows the students to be involved. A visitor to our site can look through the more than 10,000 photos, videos and stories we have posted. The visitor can also register, set up a personal page and have every piece of media (video, photo or story) involving him or her and published on the site sent directly to that page."