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The Digital Media Oligarchy: Who Owns Online News? Caitlin Scialla ([link removed])


Cover of Ben Bagdikian's Media Monopoly, First Edition When Ben Bagdikian ([link removed]) , an esteemed journalist and early FAIR contributor, published his groundbreaking book The Media Monopoly ([link removed]) in 1983, he painted a troubling picture of US media consolidation, reporting that 50 corporations controlled the media business. With each reprint, that number dwindled (FAIR.org, 6/1/87 ([link removed]) ). When FAIR replicated his analysis in 2011 (Extra!, 10/11 ([link removed]) ), it stood at 20.

Now, over 40 years after the initial release of The Monopoly Media, the media landscape has transformed drastically. Even Bagdikian’s later editions, written at the dawn of the internet, could not fully anticipate how profoundly digital technology would reconfigure the media oligarchy.

"News” is increasingly synonymous with online news. Over half the US public (56%) say that they "often" get news through their digital devices—compared to less than 1 in 3 (32%) who often get news from TV, 1 in 9 from radio and only 1 in 14 from print publications like newspapers or magazines (Pew, 9/25/25 ([link removed]) ).

Which raises the question: Who owns the leading online news sites—and, by extension, largely shapes the ideas and information that reach millions of Americans?

Each month, Press Gazette, a London-based magazine for the journalism industry, ranks ([link removed]) the top 50 news websites in the US in order of monthly visits, based on data from the marketing firm Similarweb. FAIR tallied Press Gazette’s results over a 12-month span, from December 2024 to November 2025, to get a figure for total US visits to major news sites over that period: 45.6 billion.

More than half of those visits, nearly 25.5 billion, went to news sites controlled by just seven families or corporate entities.


** 1. Ochs-Sulzberger Family (New York Times): 5.54 billion
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The owner that commands the largest share of news site viewership–a staggering 5.5 billion over one year—is the Ochs-Sulzberger family ([link removed]) , the media dynasty that acquired ([link removed]) the New York Times in 1896. Control of the Times has since passed through four generations, cemented by a family trust; over a century later, scion A.G. Sulzberger ([link removed]) currently sits as the chair and publisher. As its reach greatly expanded ([link removed]) in the digital age, the paper continues its tradition ([link removed]) of allegiance to the establishment and opposition to what it sees as excessively progressive
([link removed]) policies.


** 2. Murdoch Family (News Corp, Fox): 5.46 billion
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The No. 2 spot (just under 5.5 billion views) is occupied by the Murdoch family. Billionaire right-winger Rupert Murdoch built an expansive global media empire ([link removed]) encompassing Fox News, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Post and British tabloid the Sun, all of which made the US Top 50 list, as well as many other media ([link removed]) outlets ([link removed]) in the US, Britain and Australia.

The empire is now under two corporate umbrellas, News Corp (the papers) and Fox Corporation (TV); both are led by Rupert's billionaire son, Lachlan Murdoch ([link removed]) , who inherited the role following a messy succession battle ([link removed]) . He was apparently chosen for his dedication to maintaining the right-wing political advocacy that has long characterized ([link removed]) the Murdoch media portfolio.

Rupert Murdoch, who has always cultivated political connections ([link removed]) , has a relationship with Donald Trump going back decades ([link removed]) , with Murdoch even acting as an informal advisor ([link removed]) during Trump’s first administration. That chumminess has not been enough to protect Murdoch from Trump's assault on the news media: Trump is currently suing ([link removed]) the Wall Street Journal for $10 billion for publishing an incriminating birthday letter to Jeffrey Epstein that features his signature. Still, Murdoch and Trump were recently reported to be dining together
([link removed]) at the White House.


** 3. Warner Bros. Discovery (CNN): 4.0 billion
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CNN logo Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), a US media and entertainment conglomerate, comes in third in terms of news audience reach (4 billion), solely on the basis of its ownership of CNN. (The media group also owns extensive non-news holdings, including the Warner Bros. movie studio and HBO.)

WBD accepted a buyout bid ([link removed]) from Netflix for an estimated $83 billion, but the deal does not include ([link removed] CNN will remain in a separate corporate entity.&text=Netflix's mega $83 billion deal,far less significant for CNN.) CNN or any of Warner Bros. cable networks, which would be consolidated ([link removed]) into the separate corporation Discovery Global next year.

The Netflix/Warner Bros. deal appears to have survived ([link removed]) numerous hostile takeover bids ([link removed]) by Paramount Skydance that sought to include CNN. But there are more obstacles ahead: Aside from antitrust concerns ([link removed]) raised by Democrats over the streaming giant taking over a major Hollywood studio, Trump’s connections ([link removed]) to Larry and David Ellison of Paramount—and the fact that ownership of CNN is still very much up for grabs—means that the battle over this set of influential media properties is far from over.

Trump has pledged personal involvement ([link removed]) in the federal government’s review of the merger, warning that “it could be a problem.” He has insisted ([link removed]) that CNN be sold in any Warner Bros. deal, signaling his intent to install pro-Trump ownership and steer the network’s political angle.

Gaining control of CNN would bring Paramount to the No. 3 spot, and would grant David Ellison—son of billionaire technocrat Larry Ellison ([link removed]) , both vocal Trump supporters who have pledged ([link removed]) to use their power to further advance Trump’s own—a new level of control over the US media landscape. Warner Bros. already has a track record of capitulating ([link removed]) to the demands of the Trump administration, but a loud and proud Trump ally at the helm of CNN would be a major escalation.

Consider the rapid changes implemented at CBS following Skydance’s August 2025 acquisition of Paramount, which hugely expanded the Ellisons' media empire. As documented by FAIR (7/24/25 ([link removed]) , 10/9/25 ([link removed]) , 11/6/25 ([link removed]) ), this merger has resulted in blatant “ideological restructuring,” with the appointment of “anti-woke” ideologue Bari Weiss to CBS editor-in-chief, the cancellation of the famously Trump-critical Late Show With Stephen Colbert, and a wave of politically motivated layoffs ([link removed]) .


** 4. Apollo Global Management (Yahoo): 2.7 billion
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Yahoo logo At No. 4 is private equity firm Apollo Global Management, whichsince 2021 ([link removed]) has owned the Yahoo group. Yahoo News and Yahoo Finance together generated 2.7 billion views during the analyzed period. These sites primarily aggregate content from other news outlets, with occasional ([link removed]) original articles, and rely heavily on algorithm-based ([link removed] Yahoo is debuting a,it wasn't growing enough.) personalization. Apollo's current CEO, billionaire Marc Rowan, has recently donated ([link removed]) millions ([link removed]) to Republicans.

Rowan was also heavily involved in developing ([link removed]) Trump’s “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education,” a proposal, as the New York Times (10/3/25 ([link removed]) ) reported, that would provide financial incentives and preferential treatment to schools that sign and, in turn, agree to limit international students, protect conservative speech, generally require standardized testing for admissions and to adopt policies recognizing “that academic freedom is not absolute,” among other conditions.


** 5. Brian Roberts (Comcast): 2.4 billion
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Comcast logo Ranked No. 5 with 2.35 billion visits during the analyzed period, Comcast is a media and technology company with extensive holdings—of which NBC News, CNBC, MSNBC and Today all made appearances in the Top 50. Comcast's billionaire CEO, Brian Roberts, is the controlling shareholder.

FAIR (6/11/16 ([link removed]) , 4/23/18 ([link removed]) ) has long criticized the corporate skew of Comcast-owned media. More recently, however, this bias has devolved into patent deference to the​​ Trump administration. Trump has repeatedly criticized ([link removed]) Comcast and its news subsidiaries for bias against him. In February 2025, his FCC targeted Comcast for its “promotion of DEI.” Comcast quickly “confirmed it had received [FCC chair Brendan] Carr’s letter,” noting that it will be “cooperating with the FCC to answer their questions.” (The Hill, 2/12/25 ([link removed] President Trump's executive actions,customers%2C%E2%80%9D the spokesperson said.) ).

Changes to accommodate Trump's demands were swift and severe. As covered by FAIR (3/6/25 ([link removed]) ), MSNBC overhauled its staff soon afterward:

The news channel has nixed or demoted their most progressive anchors, all of whom are people of color. These are the hosts who have drawn the most ire from Donald Trump’s online warriors, according to Dave Zirin of The Nation (2/28/25 ([link removed]) ).

Comcast further demonstrated its subservience to Trump with a recent donation ([link removed] list of donors includes tech companies,companies T%2DMobile and Comcast%2C according to CNN.) to the new White House ballroom.

In January 2026, Comcast completed ([link removed]) its spinoff of many of its news and cable holdings, including CNBC and MSNBC (rebranded as MS Now), to Versant Media—a company that Roberts retains control ([link removed]) over.


** 6. Microsoft (MSN): 2.1 billion
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MSN logo Coming in at No. 6, Microsoft, the technology conglomerate that owns MSN, also donated ([link removed] list of donors includes tech companies,companies T%2DMobile and Comcast%2C according to CNN) to Trump’s ballroom. Similar to Yahoo, MSN is an algorithm ([link removed]) based republisher of news stories, which pulled in 2.1 billion views over the studied timeframe. Given Microsoft’s obsession ([link removed]) with AI, it is perhaps unsurprising that MSN has started to lean heavily on auto-generated content, coming under fire ([link removed]) for promoting unreliable sources and publishing blatant misinformation.

Microsoft’s ownership is dominated by institutional shareholders, with mutual fund giant Vanguard leading the way at 9% ([link removed]) . Microsoft's billionaire CEO, Satya Nadella, is known to have a friendly ([link removed]) relationship with Trump—they have met ([link removed]) and dined together ([link removed]) on several occasions. In fact, before helping to fund Trump’s East Wing ballroom, Microsoft contributed $1 million ([link removed]) to Trump’s inauguration fund.


** 7. IAC (People): 1.9 billion
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People logo No. 7 IAC Inc. owns ([link removed]) numerous media and internet brands, including Top 50 sites People and Daily Beast. Taken together, these two sites generated 1.9 billion views over 12 months. Billionaire founder Barry Diller serves as chair, senior executive ([link removed]) and the largest individual shareholder ([link removed]) of IAC. It should be noted that Diller has publicly ([link removed]) criticized ([link removed]) Trump on several occasions, standing out as the only one among the Top 7, aside from New York Times publisher Sulzberger ([link removed]) , to do so.


** Old wine in a new bottle
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While not a replica of the original Bagdikian study, which took into account all major forms of media rather than focusing on the dominant medium (then television), FAIR’s research shows the continuation of the dynamics he described in a pre-internet age. The internet has not democratized news in any meaningful way; instead, the media monopoly has simply migrated to digital spaces.

At the same time, the pervasive presence of billionaires and the entrance of private equity firms in FAIR's Top 7 suggest even further shifts away from democratic, truth-telling media.

The growing presence of private equity in media is a relatively new phenomenon ([link removed]) , highlighting the usefulness of expansive media portfolios as vehicles for profit extraction. Along with the burgeoning influence ([link removed]) of billionaires on the media landscape, the control of capital over media has become, if possible, even more apparent.
Rise of the Media Giants, by Robert McChesney

Extra! ( 11–12/97 ([link removed]) )

Almost three decades ago, the late media scholar Robert McChesney ([link removed]) (Extra!, 11–12/97 ([link removed]) ) wrote presciently of the globalization of media behemoths in the digital age:

It is a system that works to advance the cause of the global market and promote commercial values, while denigrating journalism and culture not conducive to the immediate bottom line or long-run corporate interests.

Some once posited that the rise of the internet would eliminate the monopoly power of the global media giants. Such talk has declined recently as the largest media, telecommunication and computer firms have done everything within their immense powers to colonize the internet, or at least neutralize its threat.

What is tragic is that this entire process of global media concentration has taken place with little public debate, especially in the US, despite the clear implications for politics and culture. After World War II, the Allies restricted media concentration in occupied Germany and Japan because they noted that such concentration promoted anti-democratic, even fascist, political cultures. It may be time for the United States and everyone else to take a dose of that medicine. But for that to happen will require concerted effort to educate and organize people around media issues. That is the task before us.


** Top 25 Online US News Owners 2025
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Top 25 Online US News Owners
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Research assistance: Priyanka Bansal, Saurav Sarkar, Lara-Nour Walton


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