Final answer:
Large companies that own multiple newspaper publishers are known as media conglomerates, which have contributed to a significant degree of media consolidation, resulting in a few multinational conglomerates owning the majority of media outlets.
Step-by-step explanation:
Large companies that own multiple newspaper publishers, such as GateHouse Media, Gannett Co., and Digital First Media, are referred to as media conglomerates. These conglomerates often control a vast array of media outlets, including television and radio stations, cable systems, and the internet. Over time, there has been a trend toward increased media consolidation, where fewer conglomerates dominate the media landscape. This shift has significant implications for market competition, diversity of viewpoints, and the type of information accessible to the public.
In the United States, a small number of multinational conglomerates have a disproportionate amount of control over mass media. For example, as of 2021, just four conglomerates are responsible for 90 percent of the media outlets in the country. The impact of this consolidation raises concerns about oligopoly in the media marketplace and whether this limits public discourse to a narrow range of perspectives.