# Who owns what media? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 11, 2005, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-owns-what-media/325758 "2005-10-11T15:22:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![gitfiddle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/898d66/32.png) [@gitfiddle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gitfiddle)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2005, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-owns-what-media/325758/1 "2005-10-11T15:22:24Z")
I’m just curious how one can find out who owns which media outlets. I know FOX is owned by Rupert Murdoch, but who owns CNN? Doesn’t GE own NBC? (I’m trying to remember the lyrics to a Rage Against the Machine song). I’m just curious as to who controls the news we get. I don’t know anything about the Newspapers. Who owns the NY Times? Washington Post? Are the owners always companies or are there single people or groups that own news organizations? Like the Hearsts… ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2005, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-owns-what-media/325758/2 "2005-10-11T16:06:08Z")
Time Warner owns CNN. One starting point for a specific entity may be to read the fine print on the web sites. [cnn.com](http://cnn.com) says “A Time Warner company” somewhere near the bottom. You may also look at this: [http://www.cjr.org/tools/owners/](http://www.cjr.org/tools/owners/) GE acquired NBC in the 80’s (A 20% stake in NBC Universal is owned by Vivendi Universal). ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2005, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-owns-what-media/325758/3 "2005-10-11T16:08:46Z")
The Columbia Journalism review might help. [http://www.cjr.org/tools/owners/](http://www.cjr.org/tools/owners/) As you can see, Fox is owned by Newscorp: [http://www.newscorp.com/index2.html](http://www.newscorp.com/index2.html) NBC is 80% owned by GE and 20% by Vivendi Universal. CBS is owned by Viacom. ABC is owned by Disney. CNN is owned by Time Warner. The Washington Post is owned by the Washington Post Co. (which I think is still owned entirely by the Grahams). The New York Times is owned by the New York Times Co. Hearst owns a bunch of newspapers, magazines, and TV stations. ---
**Author:** ![ColonelDax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/71e660/32.png) [@ColonelDax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ColonelDax)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2005, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-owns-what-media/325758/4 "2005-10-11T19:50:42Z")
> [@Captain Amazing](#): > > The Washington Post is owned by the Washington Post Co. (which I think is still owned entirely by the Grahams). The New York Times is owned by the New York Times Co. Washington Post Co., New York Times Co. and Dow Jones & Co. Inc., publisher of the Wall Street Journal, are publicly traded businesses, each of which is controlled by a family through a structure that includes a class of stock with extra voting rights held only by the family. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2005, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-owns-what-media/325758/5 "2005-10-11T20:25:29Z")
Viacom Sumner Redstone is the big boss and he made the money to buy Viacom from running National Amusements, a chain of movie theatres in the NE. Viacom includes… MTV Nickelodeon VH-1 BET CBS Paramount Pictures Showtime Infinity Broadcasting and Outdoor advertising company Comedy Central UPN Simon and Schuster books and a few other things I’m forgetting Disney owns ABC and ESPN, The Disney Channel, The Family Channel and some other things I’m sure. Newscorp has Fox News, the Fox Network, 20th Century Fox movie and television studios, a few newspapaers and I believe he has the Sky Network too. Time Warner Time Magazine Warner Bros Time Warner Cable DC Comics Life Magazine (is that still going?) HBO/Cinemax The WB network and much much more. ---
**Author:** ![ColonelDax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/71e660/32.png) [@ColonelDax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ColonelDax)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2005, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-owns-what-media/325758/6 "2005-10-11T20:32:38Z")
A few others, off the top of my head: Tribune Co., owner of the Los Angeles Times and Chicago Tribune, is publicly traded, as is Knight Ridder, the owner of the Miami Herald and the Philadelphia Inquirer. Bloomberg LP is privately held. Associated Press is a cooperative that’s owned by its members, who IIRC are mostly or all newspapers. Reuters Group Plc is publicly traded. Agence France-Presse is owned by the French government. ---
**Author:** ![Reply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reply/32/15952_2.png) [@Reply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reply)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2005, 11:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-owns-what-media/325758/7 "2005-10-16T11:04:50Z")
Here are a few more links: [PBS Frontline: Media giants](http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/cool/giants/) [Critical media study links: Media ownership](http://mediastudy.com/media.html)