EVOLVING THESIS PROPOSAL < September 4, 2001 >

Background
We are in the midst of a period of media convergence. In the not-too distant future, it will be possible for nearly all of our media to be delivered digitally, be it music, web sites, news coverage, television programming, movies, games and more. However, this convergence in the delivery of our media is not the only significant change taking place in our current media landscape. There has also been significant convergence on a corporate level among those who produce much of this media. At present, five corporations (News Corp, AOL Time Warner, Viacom, Bertelsmann AG, Disney and Vivendi Universal) control most of the major media outlets in this country, and throughout much of the rest of the world as well. One significant result of this large-scale corporate control of multiple media outlets is their ability to cross-promote, advertise, publicize and continually hype any or all of their subsidiaries’ products and talents across a range of mediums. For example, the same corporation that launches a summer movie blockbuster can also produce books that support it, can sell the music soundtrack that it generated while playing those songs on their radio stations, can feature its stars in their magazines and newspapers, can promote it through their television channels, can create television spin-offs from it, and the list of self-promotional opportunities goes on and on. While many of us have heard about these mega media mergers, and look upon much of this thinly-veiled advertising with a somewhat cynical eye, I believe that few of us actually realize the extent to which it has affected our current popular culture landscape. I would like to delve more deeply into this area so that I might develop a clearer understanding of the power of these corporate media megaliths.

Research Overview
I am interested in investigating the role of these major corporations in shaping the current media environment and as a result our mainstream popular culture. I am interested in delving more deeply into understanding who owns what and how that ownership allows these media giants to promote their products across multiple mediums. I am also interested in understanding what is behind this consolidation and convergence in ownership–why it has happened, what has led up to it, and what has resulted from it.

Case Study Investigation
In addition to this more general research, I plan to focus part of my investigation on the construction of something that I have been loosely calling a “media map.” I would like to try, in an interactive medium, to take a central media product, for example a film, and look at all that has been spun off from it, produced to go along with it, promoted and cross-promoted in conjunction with it and so forth. For example, how have the corporate entities attached to the movie studio developed additional products to support, reinforce and further that initial media product? Can this be mapped in an interactive environment so that it can be better understood and more clearly seen? If so, then I believe it will be easier to begin to understand how these large corporate media giants play a role in shaping our media landscape on multiple fronts while many viewers remain unaware that one company is controlling so many different channels of information.