As the year ends, the media phones in lists to substitute for news as reporters enjoy some time for the holidays. This wrought a story headlined, Mediaite’s Most Influential in News Media 2020. The list revealed how little Mediaite knows about the media.
As a reader said, "To me there is no News Media, only an entertainment complex of sorts."
The media is a business. Adam Kelly, a legendary weekly newspaperman in West Virginia, told a far younger Don Surber the truth in 1983: The purpose of a newspaper is to make money for the publisher.
37 years later, I would add that when the publisher changes the purpose of his newspaper, innocent people lose their jobs. I offer as proof the Chilton family's quest for a Pulitzer in 2017, which resulted finally in a Pulitzer and the collapse of the Chilton family's ownership of Charleston Newspapers a year later.
Mediaite wrote that Chris Wallace is the most influential person in the media. That is as wrong as saying Putin elected Donald John Trump president.
The power at Fox News belongs to Sir Rupert Murdoch, not his hirelings. Oh sure, they influence him. Murdoch's interest in politics extends only as far as his financial interests go. As it should. Murdoch's purpose is to make money for his shareholders.
But Fox is a guppy in the media ocean. Disney is the pod of whales commanding that sea. Disney dominates the movie industry with its Marvel comics franchise, its Star Wars franchise, Pixar, and its library of animated films to be reshot as movies. I look forward to its transgendered live-action Pinocchio.
Disney also owns ABC, which has the No. 1 network morning show and the No. 1 network evening show.
When Roseanne Barr insulted the Obamas, Disney cancelled the show. This helps explain the cowardice of late-night shows when it comes to joking about Obama and the rest of the Democrat Party. He who pays the piper calls the tune.
Disney also owns ESPN, which dominates sports broadcasting. No other outlet better promoted BLM propaganda. ESPN made Colin Kaepernick a star.
A year ago, Disney launched a streaming service, which now dominates that market.
Who runs Disney? Bob Chapek became its CEO on February 25. By definition, his company's domination of the American media makes him the most influential person in the news media. David Muir and George Stephanopoulos are just the hired hands.
Never forget, Clark Gable, Elizabeth Taylor, and Jimmy Stewart were just the stars. Louis B. Mayer ran MGM. None dared defy him.
FNC made a lot of money as a guppy in the ocean but appears to be selling out. So, who is the next “guppy”?
ReplyDeleteNews Max. Heard they are selling out fast.
DeleteMaybe the media's two points of view free ride is over. Guess conservatives don't have all the money after all.
ReplyDeleteOK, Big D, here comes MY list of MY favorite bloggers for 2020. Read em ERRY day:
ReplyDelete5) Citizen Free Press (new entry). Hasn’t quite found his “signature look” yet - a lot of the linked content looks the same, and too much video for my taste - but this site is the funkiest, friendliest heir apparent to The Drudge Corpse (res ipsa loquitor).
4) Instapundit (down 2 spots from 2019). The Prof has decreased his postings this past year and the site has suffered accordingly.
3) Conservative Tree House (no change). The only thing holding this site back from world-changing greatness is that those ambitions have (so far) failed to happen.
2) Ace of Spades HQ (up 2 spots from 2019). Its cynical, often angry rants were a fine soundtrack to a very fooked up year.
1) Don Surber. The first serious blogger to climb aboard the Trump Train, his commentary is a Michelin 3 Star blend of humor, music references, wise counsel, and trenchant observations. Best of the Best for 2020.
Excellent. You even got me to look up "res ipsa loquitor," which means that since I HAD to look it up, no further evidence is needed to prove that I am, in respect to the Latin language, ignorant.
DeleteExcept that I suspect that the final word is spelled "loquitur."
Don't disagree one bit, Z.
ReplyDelete1) American Thinker
ReplyDelete2) Gateway Pundit
3) Lucianne must reads
4) Lew Rockwell
Background - anything by Ron Unz
I'm a Big Don first, followed by DB Daily Update, Citizen Free Press, American Thinker. Still bounce to Whatfinger, but I wish they would simplify their site!
DeleteGreat column Don. Many of your readers appear to fail to grasp the significance of what you wrote.
ReplyDeleteTo have an impact on American “Fake News” (Democratic Propaganda) media, conservatives need to hurt them where the care - in their wallets.
But I have met so many so-called “conservatives” who continue to meekly and happily take their families to Disneyworld and continue to pay their monthly cable bills with ESPN because they “need” their live sports; generously supporting Woke Globalist Left-Wing, Disney Corp.
It makes me realize most so-called “conservatives” fat, lazy, and satisfied; and none too bright for the most part.
It makes me think Liberals are just more committed to doing whatever it takes to win (and while they were surprised by President Trump once; they refused to let it happen again) and conservatives are still working their way through the stages of grief.
In effect, Liberals are literally kicking our azz right now, and the vast majority of so-called “conservatives” are fantasizing how Trump is going to pull a rabbit out of the hat again, because they can’t deal with the reality they were outsmarted by the Democrats.
President Trump wasn’t outsmarted - he saw the Democrats’ massive voting fraud operation a mile away and called them out early.
But so-called “conservatives” along with the RINOs did nothing to stop the Democrats.
So now we have pathetic losers who did NOTHING to prevent the Democrats’ voting fraud saying that if it stands the USA is OVER.
Utter Stupidity. The fight isn’t over until we say it’s over...and it’s not over by a long shot...not even if Brain-Dead and/or HeelsUp are inaugurated.
I have to agree Susie. Not a fan, but spot on!!!
DeleteRush Limbaugh is on the top of my list.
ReplyDelete“He who pays the piper calls the tune.”
ReplyDeleteIt’s a great aphorism but, in this instance, entirely misplaced. Otherwise, Barr’s top-rated show, which by all accounts was paying for itself and then some.
My Mom disliked Disney because his movies we more expensive than we could afford. Going to Disneyland was a pipedream. There was no Orlando when I was a kid, not that it would have mattered. I have a media background (radio) so I am aware of how huge Disney is. Instead of Rockefeller oil, Carnegie steel and JP Morgan banking of yesteryear today's oligarchs are the media moguls as they control the narrative. We 75 million have to get by as best we can living by their rules.
ReplyDeleteBy the way schoolboard elections are far more important than presidential elections.
"ESPN made Colin Kaepernick a star."
ReplyDeleteMade me think. Y'know, back in the day when I regularly read "The Sporting News" That guy would've been nothing more than a paragraph in some "off the field" type column.
"Lee had an off year, going 4-13 with a 5.32 ERA at Keokuk. He's a fine off-season bowler."
DeleteNever forget, Clark Gable, Elizabeth Taylor, and Jimmy Stewart were just the stars. Louis B. Mayer ran MGM. None dared defy him.
ReplyDeleteBut a young and gutsy Olivia deHavilland dared defy Jack Warner and all the other moguls and freed Hollyweird.
And she is still around!
DeleteWhen they would trash capitalism, which is almost always, I used to piss liberals off by asking why a newspaper publisher produce HIS paper? As Don said, the answer is to make money. Liberals would answer with all kinds of save the world answers. But, the simple truth is if the publisher could not feed his family and pay his bills by publishing the paper, he would be in a different line of work. They would be angry, but you can't avoid the truth.
ReplyDeleteWithout Carlos Slim and Jeff Bezos, the NYTimes and Washington Post would be hurting.
ESPN has been draining money from Disney. Covid is hurting the parks. Lets see how long the good times last for them.
Agreed. Disney right now is in a barrel of acid, stocked with piranhas (those poor fish!).
DeleteAnd it can definitely get worse for these poor rich, arrogant and devious bastards, because their identical fascist twins in politics are locking everything down that had been making money for Disney, with the exception of the sewerage currently offered by their streaming.