AUSTIN, Texas — In the U.S., media companies are largely privately funded.
In Europe and other countries, there is a lot more public media that is funded by the government. But most media companies in the U.S. are private.
"As private companies, they are trying to make money. They're also trying to serve a public good," said Gina Masullo, associate director of the Center for Media Engagement at the University of Texas at Austin.
Over the last decade, news organizations have faced tough times. The internet came along and changed business models.
"It's harder for news organizations to make money in the internet age than it was 20 years ago before we had the internet," Masullo said.
Despite that, covering the news and stories that are important to the community hasn’t changed. Money doesn’t play a role in those decisions.
"[In] a legitimate news organization, the advertising department is making those decisions separately from the news department. And those two things shouldn't be mixing at all," Masullo said.
While you do see advertisements in the commercial breaks or on news websites, those ads are what keep the lights on and pay the bills. Journalists generally do not look to advertisers for news judgment.
Instead, the goal is to cover stories that are important to the community. That's something that should never be swayed.
See more from this series by checking out this YouTube playlist.
We want to hear your questions about how news is gathered and then reported to you. Text KVUE at 512-459-9442 or email bnewberry@kvue.com.
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