Coca Coca Cola!

Although Coca-Cola is not a major media company at first thought, the company’s influence on the media, and its sponsors forcefully push it into a media class.  Coca-Cola is universally known to be one of the most famous beverage companies, with a net income sitting at $5,981,000 and operating in over 200 countries.  Coca-Cola owns 13 brands with sales over $1 billion, and markets more than 2800 products including sparkling and still beverages, waters, juices, teas, coffees, sports drinks and energy drinks.  Coca-Cola owns four of the world’s top five sparkling beverages, which are Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Sprite and Fanta.  Just in case this is not enough information, you should know that if all the Coca-Cola ever produced were in 8 ounce bottles laid end to end, they would reach to the moon and back 1,677 times.  

Coca-Cola is considered a major media company because of it’s obvious influence on the surrounding media.  As soon as a polar bear is seen anywhere, the public automatically thinks of Coke because of their famous commercials infested with polar bears.  Coca-Cola is also part of the media because of who they sponsor, take the Olympics for instance.  Coke is responsible for turning their famous drink into an icon, used all around the world.  Say for example, if Coke sponsors a rock concert, and written in bold on the stage is “COCA-COLA”, the viewers no longer think of Coke as a drink at the time, they think of it as a sign at a concert, an icon.  

Cross media ownership comes with one very defined implication; narrow vision. Robert W. McChesney once said that “the largest media firms have some of the same major shareholders, own pieces of one another or have interlocking boards of directors.” If one company owns multiple smaller companies, where is the diversity?  Don’t get me wrong, Coke is doing an exceptional job at keeping up with the consumers and providing without failure, but one company running the show means one vision running the show.  Coca-Cola’s opinions and messages trickle through all their brands and make this one big Coke world.  

"Coca Cola Canada." 2008. 26 Nov. 2008 <http://www.cocacola.ca/our_company.htm>.

McChesney, Robert W. "The New Global Media:It's a Small World of Big Conglomerates." 1999. 25 Nov. 2008 <http://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/29/053.html>.

Wallechinsky, David. "Businesses in the World Coca-Cola Company." Trivia Library. 1981. 25 Nov. 2008 <http://www.trivia-library.com/b/businesses-in-the-world-coca-cola-company.htm>.