Letter: Media monopolies

To the editor:

I recently saw the movie "The Post," and I loved it. It was about The Washington Post newspaper and its dilemma over whether or not to publish the infamous Pentagon papers.

What was heartening to see was how the owner and staff of the Post were dedicated to the importance of freedom of speech and the very soul of our democracy.

Back in 1971, there were many owners of newspapers and other media, and it was virtually impossible to control the message being disseminated. Today we have a very different landscape.

In 1983, there were 50 companies who owned 90 percent of all media. Today, there are six companies who own 90 percent of all media, making it very easy for a few to control what we see and hear in the news. It has become vogue for mega corporations to buy up flagging news operations and turn them into handy PR functions.

Today's Washington Post and its editors won't have to face the moral dilemma seen in the movie because the owner is not a dedicated journalist, it's Amazon.

Ex "Post" Facto.

Mike Simon

Glen Ellyn