Corporate Wealth Does Not Drive Media Coverage

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Apple may get a lot of media attention every time it releases a new iPad or iPhone, but not every company with a fat bank account is guaranteed lots of publicity, new research shows.

In an examination of the 10 wealthiest public companies, HighBeam Research discovered that many of the businesses that generate the most revenue receive the least amount of media attention.

Topping the revenue list of companies examined was General Electric, which accounted for more than 19 percent of the total revenue among the Top 10. Yet only 3 percent of all the examined documents by the media pertaining to the Top 10 were about GE, ranking the company near the bottom.

Similarly, JP Morgan Chase and Wells Fargo took third and fourth place in terms of revenue, respectively, but both were also near the bottom of the list when it came to 2012 publicity. 

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On the opposite end, Google ranked second in terms of media exposure, at 24 percent, even though it was near the bottom of the revenue list – landing at ninth place, with just 5 percent of the Top 10’s revenue.  In addition, Microsoft garnered 16 percent of the media spotlight while accounting for just 9 percent of the revenue.

Apple was the lone company to buck the trend, ranking second in the cash department, with 14 percent of 2011’s total revenue, and first in media attention, with 32 percent.

The study was based on research of more than 80 million credible documents from more than 6,500 publications, including journals, magazines, newspapers and transcripts.

This story was provided by BusinessNewsDaily, a sister site to LiveScience. Chad Brooks is a Chicago-based freelance business and technology writer who has worked in public relations and spent 10 years as a newspaper reporter. You can reach him at chadgbrooks@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @cbrooks76.