This article examines how the Howard government's 2006 media ownership rules affected the concentration of ownership of Australian commercial television and radio services and newspapers. It reviews the historical context of these changes and presents new data on ownership in the light of attitude surveys showing that a large majority of Australians believe media owners have too much power. It shows that the new ownership regime has led to more rather than less concentration of ownership, and explains how the 2006 rules both give primacy to economic market considerations and further sideline other priorities of quality and democratic governance of the media.
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