Media Stocks Slide

CBS, Discovery, Liberty Media and Viacom shares touched 52-week lows Friday as the fourth quarter began with a thud on Wall Street.

Investors were glum over a weaker-than-expected report of factory activity in September and concerns that last week's first reported case of ebola in the U.S. would keep many people from flying.

The benchmark Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.4%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 dropped 1.3% and tech-heavy NASDAQ slipped 1.6%.

Media stocks also were grounded, with the Dow Jones U.S. Media Index -1.6% to its lowest point since early August. Discovery was hardest hit among Big Media, with shares -3.9%. It was followed by Viacom (-2.2%), Time Warner (-2%), Fox (-1.7%), Disney (-1.7%), Comcast (-1.6%), Sony (-1.5%), and CBS (-1.3%).

CNBC's David Faber discusses the challenges facing traditional cable providers and the slide of media stocks on ratings and advertising concerns.