Remembering Robert McChesney: Critic of Media Consolidation and Big Tech

Remembering Robert McChesney

• 💡 Robert McChesney, a co-founder of the advocacy group Free Press, has died at age 72.
• 🧠 He was a prolific author and professor known for his work on media, democracy, and digital rights.
• 🎯 McChesney was a prescient critic of corporate media consolidation and the growing power of Big Tech.

McChesney's Critique of the Internet

• 🚀 The internet was initially envisioned as a non-commercial, empowering space for citizens.
• ⚠️ McChesney argued that the internet has become the biggest generator of monopoly in history, contrary to its early promise.
• 🔒 Monopolistic corporations like AT&T, Verizon, Comcast, Google, Facebook, Apple, and Amazon have emerged, controlling access and applications.
• 📊 These companies collect vast amounts of user information, sell it to advertisers, and work closely with government and national security agencies, eroding privacy.

Political Economy of Media and Access

• 💰 Americans pay more for worse internet and cell phone service due to a cartel of access providers (AT&T, Verizon, Comcast).
• 📉 This lack of competition is a result of corrupt policymaking and the immense power of these firms.
• 🌐 Network economics and patents have made the internet increasingly closed off, preventing newcomers and reinforcing monopolies.

The Fate of Content Providers and Journalism

• 📰 McChesney foresaw a sheer unmitigated disaster for content providers like journalists, musicians, and artists.
• 📉 While media consolidation contributed to shrinking newsrooms, the internet has accelerated the collapse of journalism.
• 🚫 It is now extremely difficult for commercial interests to make significant money from journalism, especially for a broad popular audience.