ALEX BRUMMER: Britain’s creative crown jewels are under mortal threat from US mega-mergers
Alex Brummer warns that a wave of "mega-mergers" in the media industry threatens the future of independent, trustworthy TV news on both sides of the Atlantic. He argues that as viewers increasingly abandon traditional broadcasters for streaming services and unreliable social media sources, consolidation among major broadcasters risks undermining a pillar of modern democracy and creates a genuine public safety concern given the spread of disinformation and AI-generated "slop".
The article highlights two major deals: in Britain, Comcast-owned Sky has agreed a £1.6billion takeover of ITV's broadcasting and streaming arm, which would end 70 years of domestic ownership of ITV and leave Comcast controlling both Sky and ITN. In America, Paramount, led by David Ellison, is pursuing an £83billion acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery. Brummer notes ITV chief executive Dame Carolyn McCall felt compelled to accept the Sky deal amid a stagnant share price and shareholder pressure, despite the broadcaster's strong audience reach and successful ITVX streaming platform.
- Sky's £1.6bn ITV takeover would end 70 years of British ownership
- Paramount is separately pursuing an £83bn Warner Bros Discovery deal
- Brummer says such mergers threaten independent TV news and democracy
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Britain's ITV was formed in the 1950s and has remained a British-owned broadcaster ever since, best known for programmes such as Coronation Street and its ITV News service, run through a company called ITN. Sky, once independent, is now owned by the American cable and entertainment giant Comcast, which also has media interests through NBCUniversal. Comcast has agreed a deal to buy ITV's broadcasting and streaming business, a move that would bring Sky and ITV under the same American owner for the first time.
At the same time, in the United States, Paramount, run by David Ellison, is trying to buy another major media company, Warner Bros Discovery, in a deal reportedly worth around £83billion. Both moves are part of a broader trend of large media companies merging or being bought up, as traditional television audiences shrink and more viewers turn to streaming platforms and social media for news and entertainment.
These deals matter because television news has traditionally been seen as a trusted, regulated source of information, distinct from the less regulated content found online. Critics of consolidation argue that fewer, larger owners controlling more of the media landscape could affect the range and independence of news available to the public, while supporters of such deals often point to financial pressures facing traditional broadcasters as a reason for combining resources.
Both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
A concerned observer would argue that concentrating major broadcasters and their news arms in the hands of a small number of overseas conglomerates weakens the plurality of trusted, editorially independent journalism that underpins informed democratic debate. They would point out that ending seventy years of domestic ownership of ITV, and placing Sky and ITN under the same American parent, reduces the diversity of ownership at a moment when audiences are already drifting towards unregulated and often unreliable social media and AI-generated content, making a shrinking pool of dependable broadcast journalism a matter of genuine public interest rather than mere commercial reshuffling.
The case against
A more sanguine observer would argue that these mergers are a rational, even necessary, response to a broadcasting market being reshaped by streaming and changing viewing habits, and that scale is what allows companies like ITV to keep investing in quality journalism and production rather than withering under a stagnant share price. They would note that Dame Carolyn McCall's decision reflects fiduciary duty to shareholders and a realistic assessment of ITV's competitive position, and that a well-resourced international owner such as Comcast could in fact strengthen, not threaten, the long-term viability and reach of British-made news and content, provided existing regulatory safeguards on editorial independence are maintained.