This book analyzes one of the largest media conglomerates worldwide, the Bertelsmann Corporation. Analyzing its history, its corporate divisions and international business relations, the book focuses on the dominant role of Bertelsmann in international media – and media services – in Europe, the U.S., Latin America, and China. Addressing a broad readership interested in issues of media ownership, journalism and policy work, this book shows how issues of media ownership and corporate power are closely connected to issues of beyond media, namely politics, consulting, services and financial transactions. The book also draws parallels to other major media conglomerates and their attempts to influence communication infrastructures and policies on national and international levels, helping readers to understand the broader structural relations and power mechanisms at play in the global media market. The book will be of interest primarily to scholars in the fields of global media studies, international communication studies, and the critical political economy of media and communication.

This book analyzes one of the largest media conglomerates worldwide, the Bertelsmann Corporation. Analyzing its history, its corporate divisions and international business relations, the book focuses on the dominant role of Bertelsmann in international media – and media services – in Europe, the U.S., Latin America, and China. Addressing a broad readership interested in issues of media ownership, journalism and policy work, this book shows how issues of media ownership and corporate power are closely connected to issues of beyond media, namely politics, consulting, services and financial transactions. The book also draws parallels to other major media conglomerates and their attempts to influence communication infrastructures and policies on national and international levels, helping readers to understand the broader structural relations and power mechanisms at play in the global media market. The book will be of interest primarily to scholars in the fields of global media studies, international communication studies, and the critical political economy of media and communication.