REPORT: Research Trends in Communication with a Focus on Media Conglomerates Over the years, and throughout the complex

intrusion of the media in peoples everyday lives, much of the research topics that have been addressed, as pointed out by Wimmer and Dominick (2006), have focused on (a) the forms of media which include print and electronic media, (b) the other industries that are also embraced by communication such as advertising and public relations, (c) the effects of media to its respective audience, and (d) the new media, which is homed in on the Internet. Whitney and Etterna (2003), however, although rooted on the general studies on communication as enumerated by Wimmer and Dominick, have discussed also the trends in research in terms of media production with a focus on (1) the levels of analysis, (2) theoretical perspectives, and (3) the range of communicators. The levels of analysis look at the individuals, organizations, and institutions that manufacture, control, and distribute forms of entertainment and information in our mediated world. The writers differentiate these three particular groups in the field of media production and their particular areas of concern. Such issues or studies that emerge on the individual level deal with journalist or practitioner biases, organizational processes in determining the headlines or stories, and, at the institutional level, where economic arrangements within media industries have important implications for the work of professional mass communicators and for the form, content, and meaning of media messages (Whitney, Etterna, 2003). Theoretical perspectives, as Schudson writes, (1989) touch on content news or media content. He labelled these perspectives as (1) sociological, (2) political-economic, and (3) culturological. The sociological perspective is grounded on the idea that reality portrayed in the news is socially constructed (Whitney, Etterna, 2003). This is where the framing of news sets in, that how the story or news is framed organizes the report (Gitlin, 1980, p. 19). In this regard, media practitioners, organizations, and institutions merely present a particular reality of a given issue. The political-economic perspective focuses more in the media institutions where powerful institutions shape media content (Whitney, Etterna, 2003). The power structure of various institutions in society shape what is to be considered as news or which topics are important. The culturological perspective deals with the widely shared assumptions about the world and the widely used strategies for making sense of it (Schudson, 1989). The points for discussion under this perspective deal with the very products of the institutions and how viewers can make sense of these products. The range of communicators includes the role of other organizations and industries such as advertising and public relations, and their connections to news and entertainment (Whitney, Etterna, 2003). Video games, the Internet, and media convergence, are also looked into. Given the trends and range of the researches being conducted on media production with a focus on the individuals, organizations, and institutions, this researcher believes that studies on media conglomerates and the moguls would fall under the given categories and trends specified by Whitney and Etterna. Researches and journals that discuss this particular facet of the media industries have emerged although the articles emanate mostly from North American scholars

with only a number of Asian scholars. In the local setting, there are studies on the media as an industry; however, there hasnt been much study done on conglomerates though they can also be affected indirectly by the studies or theses conducted. In the North American studies on media conglomerates, from the late 1990s to present, the focus has been on the conglomerates in terms of their expansion and product diversity, physical and geographical visibility, news content, distribution and programming, and in their financial growth or losses. In the Asian studies, there is a focus on the localization of the news and on news content as well. Space Jam: The Media Conglomerates Build the Entertainment City by Davis (1999) discusses how conglomerates build entertainment cities through theme parks, retail stores, and clubs. The writer explores how these new places for entertainment are part of the conglomerates products where citizens are collapsed into consumers and loyalty is a technique for expansion. Visibility in television, print, and film is no longer enough; there is then a new dimension for audiences to extend the gratification gained from the core products of TV shows and films, and this is where the theme parks enter. The journals Conglomeration, New Media, and the Cultural Production on the War on Terror by James Castonguay (Summer, 2004) and Fox and Its Friends: Global Commodification and the New Cold War by Dennis Broe (Summer, 2004) focus on the coverage of the War on Terror instigated by the Bush Administration and how the idea of war is included and tackled in the various shows in the conglomerates television networks. Broe, however, takes a more focused look as he discusses how Fox Corp covers the War on Terror (Iraq), and how the war on terrorism crosses over to one of its shows, which is the series entitled 24. As the coverage on war becomes a topic on the television show, there is a greater emphasis on the issue and the reality of the war is validated even stronger. In North American Professional Team Sport Franchises Ownership Patterns and Global Entertainment Conglomerates by Michael Cantelon (2001), the writer looks into the current ownership patterns of North American professional sport franchises and reveals that a number of the owners are media conglomerates. Taking advantage of the interest in sports and sports fanaticism of audiences, the conglomerates then have an influence in the coverage of the sports events and a control in terms of market share. In the studies Diversification Strategy of Global Media Conglomerates: Examining Its Patrons and Determinants by Olmsted and Chang (2003) and Impacts of Media Conglomerates Dual Diversification on Financial Performance by Jung and Olmsted (2005), there is a focus on the diversification of the product lines. The former explores the extent to which the conglomerates diversify their products. The second, an update on the first study, looks into the diversification of the products in terms of economy how they affect the financial performance of the conglomerates. As discovered, although diversification may serve as a smorgasbord of options for audiences or consumers, how related the products are to one another have a positive influence on consumers.

The journals Whistle While You Work: The Disney Company and the Global Division of Labour by James Tracy (1999) and Infotainment and Moral Obligations of the Multimedia Conglomerate by Mary Lyn Stoll (2006) explore the moral obligations of media conglomerates on two facets. Tracy discusses the labour practices of the Disney Company in other countries in terms of product and good manufacturing. There is much concern on the wages of the employees and their working conditions: to distribute the work outside and pay at minimum rate thereby increasing sales. Stoll, however, looks into the moral and civic duty of the media as purveyors of truth. There is the question of what concerns need to be addressed and what is the role of the media in addressing the issues. If the content or the material goes against the government or political figures, to what extent do the industries have in controlling the issues? Which side does the media institution take the public or the government? Morality is thus a focus on both articles though they may differ in the content analyzed. The journals The Murdochization of News? The Case of Star TV in India by Daya Kishan Thusu (2007) and Business News Channels in Asia: Strategies and Challenges by Seema Shrikhande (2004) focus on the content of news in the Asian setting. Thusu focuses on the Indian experience of Fox Corp localizing its news programs and entertainment shows, whereas Shrikhande looks into the experience of the merging of two news channels in Asia and how they are able to sustain their audience. The studies looked into the localization of programs. Language was considered in the success of the shows in the countries being covered, where although English is an international language, dubbing or translating the content to the local language proves to be more effective in reaching and sustaining audiences. However, for Thusu, an issue that emerges in the study deals with how the culture of Fox Corp has intruded the culture of Indian programming and values. In the Philippine setting, there hasnt been much study on the media conglomerates. There has been an article written about it by Sheila Coronel (1999) entitled Lords of the Press. It takes a look at the newspaper owners of the country and the businesses they are tied to. The article also reveals how the owners of the newspaper have a say on what is to be printed and what should be left in the editing room, and that they also use their newspapers to serve their businesses as well. It is a topic that can be of further research and can include other conglomerates as well, such as cable networks and our local television stations. In theses conducted in schools and universities, much of the focus has been on the media industry in terms of films or television but not on the media as conglomerates.

REFERENCES Broe, D. Fox and Its Friends: Global Commodification and the New Cold War. From Cinema Journal Volume 43, No. 4. Summer, 2004. 97-102 Cantelon, M. North American Professional Team Sport Franchises Ownership Patterns and Global Entertainment Conglomerates. From Sociology of Sport Journal. 2001. 24 pages Castonguay, J. Conglomeration, New Media, and the Cultural Production on the War on Terror. From Cinema Journal. Volume 43, No. 4. Summer, 2004. 102-108 Coronel, S. Lord of the Press. From The Investigative Reporting Magazine. 1999. 10 pages. Davis, S. Space Jam: The Media Conglomerates Build the Entertainment City. From European Journal of Communication. 1999. 26 pages Jung, Olmsted. Impacts of Media Conglomerates Dual Diversification on Financial Performance. From Journal of Media Economics. 2005. 21 pages Olmsted, Chang. Diversification Strategy of Global Media Conglomerates: Examining Its Patrons and Determinants. From Journal of Media Economics. 2003. 22 pages Shrikhande, S. Business News Channels in Asia: Strategies and Challenges From Asian Journal of Communication. Vol 14, No. 1. March 2004. 38-52 Stoll, M. Infotainment and Moral Obligations of the Multimedia Conglomerate. From Journal of Business Ethics. 2006. 9 pages. Thusu, D. The Murdochization of News? The Case of Star TV in India. From Media, Culture, and Society. 2007. 20 pages Tracy, J. Whistle While You Work: The Disney Company and the Global Division of Labour. From Journal of Communication Inquiry. 1999. 17 pages Whitney, Ettema (2003). Media Production: Individuals, Organizations, Institutions. From A Companion to Media Studies. Blackwell Publishing. 157-187 Wimmer, Dominick (2006) Mass Media Research An Introduction (7th Ed). CA: Wadsworth