Late Thursday, while unconfirmed reports spread regarding a shooting at Brown University, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, noting the confusion and directing people to her channel's 9pm newscast.
While CNN is certainly not a flawless news source, her message resonated to many. It remains one of the broadcasters where you can find reality-based and mostly dependable reporting – notably during crises such as the one unfolding close to a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable Situation Amid a Corporate Struggle
However CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a uncertain position as two massive media conglomerates vie for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the future of CNN has turned into a high-risk game of mergers and acquisitions, instead of as a question of what helps the information-seeking public.
“This is yet another example of the deep structural problems with roots in decades of governmental choices,” stated Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the University of Pennsylvania.
The conjecture about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a larger point.
“It gets presented as a business story with key players as the central actors, but there is hardly any discussion of the common good,” Pickard added.
The Complicating Element: Political Influence
The CNN scenario is made more complex by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his main “fake news” foe.
Recall the chants of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his administration’s punitive revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in official meetings.
Trump now says that CNN needs new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will protect him from negative coverage and examination. That is a factor in why he seems to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.
There is a basis to like that suitor more. For one thing, it is run by David Ellison, son of the ally of Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
Paramount, owner of CBS News, also recently installed the conservative Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that venerable news network.
An Outcome of More Turmoil
It is important to note, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a separate entity. This might be a relief to many at the network, but it’s hardly a safe harbor. That arrangement could position CNN for a future sale. There is no finish line.
According to Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance stated that anti-trust laws should disallow both deals.
“Both acquisition attempts would be harmful to the country, and both should be opposed by the government,” Wu recently wrote.
The Bigger Issue and a Way Ahead
Regardless of the resolution with this particular battle, the larger issue persists.
“The present media landscape is a highly system hostile to democracy, but we ought not succumb to the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard said. Regulatory choices – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this profit-obsessed monster, and different policy decisions can tackle it.
Is this likely in an era where the top communications regulator won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Change is a distant prospect now, but that should not imply it will not happen in the future.
Measures that bolster independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, finance public media, and prohibit the consolidation of media power in a handful of hands are not only possible – they are necessary for a healthy democracy.
Regarding media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations such as CNN cannot be pawns in the most recent acquisition battle.
