Due to media consolidation, a few large US-based multinational companies (conglomerates) own a large proportion of US newspapers, TV and radio stations, broadcast networks, cable networks and major Internet news sites. In fact, all of the cable news networks are owned by conglomerates, as are the majority of the most-accessed news websites. (See graphic, right).

More and more, these companies control most of the news Americans read, watch, and hear. They are also buying up media worldwide, although there are still plenty of newspapers and websites around the world that are not owned by US companies.

If you want more information about media consolidation in the US, here are a few good websites:

Media Consolidation on Now has an overview of the issue as well as transcripts and video clips of relevant segments that were broadcast on the PBS show Now With Bill Moyers.

Who Owns What, a project of the Columbia Journalism Review (a magazine affiliated with Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism) lets you find out which big media companies own which smaller media companies.

Ownership of Most Popular News Sites is exemplary data on media consolidation available from Journalism.org,  a website produced by concerned journalists, news producers and editors, publishers, and academics.

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