If you ever wanted to track down who owns a news outlet, it’s now much easier to do it. The U.S. Media Index database by the Future of Media Project has done the grueling work of compiling that information for us.
The databases includes three indices: The U.S. Mainstream Media Index details the 176 parent companies of daily news outlets; the index of emerging nonprofit media and donors lists 231 nonprofit news outlets and who funds them; and an index of the seven owners of daily newspapers is categorized by state.
The first index, for example, focuses on listing traditional news outlets, like newspapers, magazines, digital news outlets, television channels and stations, and public radio. It excludes podcasts, bloggers, Substack or Medium columnists, and talk radio.
The database was produced by The Future of Media Project, which is hosted at the Institute for Quantitative Social Science at Harvard.
In partnership with the Harvard Business School, the Future of Media Project focuses on “research and identifying implementable solutions to rebalance truth, privacy and power in the media industry.”
“At a time when sources of information have proliferated at an extraordinary pace, a map or index seemed necessary,” the title page says. “Our empirical claim is that radical transparency in U.S. media ownership will improve trust in newsrooms by empowering people to understand their media landscape and, in turn, deter them from feeling duped.”
See the full database here.
Awesome resource spotlighted today by @sarafischer in #AxiosMediaTrends @axios
Mapped: Who owns the news — extraordinary data rendered accessible and interactive by @Harvard‘s The Future of Media Project:https://t.co/IMfn0vPhqc
— jim haigh (@jmhaigh) May 11, 2021
Whatever people can find, keep posting. The goal of mapping our US Mainstream Media, Emerging News Nonprofits, and Consolidation of Dailies by State was to open up a can of worms! Many things to discover here, regardless of your politics. Let's get to it! https://t.co/Is5Ak5RF9Y https://t.co/D8cfkdAtBE
— Heidi Legg (@heidilegg) May 11, 2021