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Kids Corner: Media Ownership Debate Matters to Kids, Too
Natasha Kirtchuk is 11 years old and she's worried about who owns the media - your local TV stations, the networks and cable channels, your radio stations and newspapers. She thinks you should be worried, too, no matter how old you are.
"If only a few companies own the local TV and radio stations and newspapers in each city, kids won't be exposed to the diversity of ideas that we need to grow into good citizens," Natasha says.
Chances are you've never thought about who owns the stations and newspapers that you watch, listen to and read. Don't worry, not that many adults have thought about it either. Or at least they haven't until recently.
What's happening now is that a government agency called the Federal Communications Commission is considering changing some of its rules about media ownership. These rules were put in place long ago to make sure that TV, radio and newspapers would be owned by many different people with many different points of view.
The rules have already been changed over the years and now just a few giant companies - such as ABC/Disney, General Electric and Time-Warner/AOL - control the lion's share of our country's media.
Now these companies want the FCC to change the rules again, so that they can own even more TV and radio stations, as well as newspapers. The big companies are squeezing out small, local owners. In the process, communities are losing their local voice. Local news coverage is being cut back, radio stations are firing disc jockeys and playing taped music and local advertisers are being forced to pay higher and higher rates.
These are just some of the consequences of what we're calling media consolidation, or media concentration. In January, it was the subject of a hearing in New York City. One of the people who spoke was Katina Paron, the director of Children's Pressline, a New York City program that teaches kids how to be reporters and editors, and then publishes kids' opinions for adults to read.
Paron said she was speaking out for children, who weren't represented on the panels at the hearing. She said children make up 26 percent of the population, but only 10 percent of news stories feature children. And half of those are about crimes.
"The fact that the FCC hasn't thoroughly considered how deregulating the media will affect the development, welfare and livelihood of young people is deeply disheartening," she said.
Then she read a statement from Natasha, who came to the hearing to listen and interview people involved. Here's some of what Natasha wanted to say:
"It's important for kids to have different ways to look at a situation. When someone tells us what they think, we won't know enough to form our own opinions. Interesting TV and radio gives kids something to chew on.
"Everyone thinks that kids just watch and watch and watch TV. Well, maybe we do talk about it a lot, but it's something we all do. In the media, we can see different ways that kids can be, and adults can be, and it helps us learn.
"Kids like seeing kids on TV because on TV they have a special place in society. We can see kids being important and, for once, we see people actually listening to them.
"We will lose faith in the news if what we read in the newspaper and see on TV all sounds the same. If we can't trust the news, we'll ignore it. And you wonder why young adults don't vote.
"As it is, children don't have a voice in the mainstream media. How can the commissioners - all former kids - not consider our voices when making this decision? We are 26 percent of this country and we are more than just the future. We are present."
For more information about Children's Pressline, and how to get involved if you live in the New York City area, go online to www.cplmedia.org or call (212) 760-2772. You can read more about media consolidation in Making the Case Against Media Giants, in this month's CWA News.
"If only a few companies own the local TV and radio stations and newspapers in each city, kids won't be exposed to the diversity of ideas that we need to grow into good citizens," Natasha says.
Chances are you've never thought about who owns the stations and newspapers that you watch, listen to and read. Don't worry, not that many adults have thought about it either. Or at least they haven't until recently.
What's happening now is that a government agency called the Federal Communications Commission is considering changing some of its rules about media ownership. These rules were put in place long ago to make sure that TV, radio and newspapers would be owned by many different people with many different points of view.
The rules have already been changed over the years and now just a few giant companies - such as ABC/Disney, General Electric and Time-Warner/AOL - control the lion's share of our country's media.
Now these companies want the FCC to change the rules again, so that they can own even more TV and radio stations, as well as newspapers. The big companies are squeezing out small, local owners. In the process, communities are losing their local voice. Local news coverage is being cut back, radio stations are firing disc jockeys and playing taped music and local advertisers are being forced to pay higher and higher rates.
These are just some of the consequences of what we're calling media consolidation, or media concentration. In January, it was the subject of a hearing in New York City. One of the people who spoke was Katina Paron, the director of Children's Pressline, a New York City program that teaches kids how to be reporters and editors, and then publishes kids' opinions for adults to read.
Paron said she was speaking out for children, who weren't represented on the panels at the hearing. She said children make up 26 percent of the population, but only 10 percent of news stories feature children. And half of those are about crimes.
"The fact that the FCC hasn't thoroughly considered how deregulating the media will affect the development, welfare and livelihood of young people is deeply disheartening," she said.
Then she read a statement from Natasha, who came to the hearing to listen and interview people involved. Here's some of what Natasha wanted to say:
"It's important for kids to have different ways to look at a situation. When someone tells us what they think, we won't know enough to form our own opinions. Interesting TV and radio gives kids something to chew on.
"Everyone thinks that kids just watch and watch and watch TV. Well, maybe we do talk about it a lot, but it's something we all do. In the media, we can see different ways that kids can be, and adults can be, and it helps us learn.
"Kids like seeing kids on TV because on TV they have a special place in society. We can see kids being important and, for once, we see people actually listening to them.
"We will lose faith in the news if what we read in the newspaper and see on TV all sounds the same. If we can't trust the news, we'll ignore it. And you wonder why young adults don't vote.
"As it is, children don't have a voice in the mainstream media. How can the commissioners - all former kids - not consider our voices when making this decision? We are 26 percent of this country and we are more than just the future. We are present."
For more information about Children's Pressline, and how to get involved if you live in the New York City area, go online to www.cplmedia.org or call (212) 760-2772. You can read more about media consolidation in Making the Case Against Media Giants, in this month's CWA News.