PLURALISM OWNERSHIP Liberal left media a myth?

The online challenge to mass media consensus

Interesting 'radical' take on the British media, linking the structural power of a bank to the shrinking of any notional counter-hegemonic, leftist voice.

I was surprised to learn that The Guardian is the biggest recipient of HSBC advertising, not the Telegraph, which notoriously spiked a critical column to, it was widely seen, protect it's crucial ad revenues. Moreover, it is no longer owned by a charitable trust - must check on that, as that claim (this is a detailed article with many hyperlinked sources) fatally undermines the identity of the paper as a bulwark against the billionaire press barons.

[Jonathan Cook article]

From the intro:

When I and others accuse the British media of systematic and consistent bias in favour of corporate power, and point out that the media is structurally part of that system of corporate power, we typically receive emails from readers arguing that not all parts of the media are subject to such pressures. Britain, we are told, is privileged to have two “liberal” media outlets, the BBC and Guardian, that are seen either as neutral or as a leftwing counterbalance to the rightwing agenda of the rest of the media.

Occasionally, it is also claimed that Britain’s media regulator, Ofcom, is there to prevent bias, ensuring that minimum standards of objectivity are maintained in news coverage.

Here are three illuminating articles and a short video that should help to dispel any such illusions about a healthy and diverse British media. Rather, the media in the UK is embedded in the corporate world, and therefore incapable of fulfilling its self-declared role as watchdog against abuses by the powerful.

Arguably more elevated than 'citizen journalism', but another good example of a freelancer puncturing the bubble of mainstream mass media through his efforts, primarily distributed through blog and other social media platforms such as Facebook.

See also the likes of Another Angry Blogger, The Canary and Jonathan Pie... more influential than the press to a younger generation?

Part of the Jonathan Pie online operation, with Facebook arguably his most impactive platform