MEDIA OWNERSHIP
Although the consolidation of radio (mainly by Clear Channel) has resulted in the homogenization of music, it has probably also helped to save some stations that might not have survived if it was locally owned and had to pay a full day's worth of talent and its own sales staff. Instead, Clear Channel-type consolidation allows the sharing of sales staffs and talent. Rush Limbaugh argues that syndication has saved small local stations, and he's partially right. But so have economies of scale. Currently, many local television stations, especially in smaller markets, are losing money and will be forced to go out of business unless they can join forces with another station in their market. This might mean that your local UPN and CBS stations will be owned by the same company. The alternative is no UPN. No big loss to some, but certainly a blow to diversity of programming, despite by the hysterical rantings of John Edwards and his ilk.