On Thursday evening, while unconfirmed reports spread regarding the Brown University gunman, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins used social media, pointing out the conflicting information and guiding the public to her network’s 9pm newscast.
Even though CNN is certainly not a perfect news source, her message rang true for numerous observers. It stands as one of the outlets where you can find reality-based and largely reliable reporting – particularly during breaking news situations like the one taking place near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable Position Amid a Business Battle
However CNN, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a uncertain situation as two massive media empires vie for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
Whatever the outcome, the fate of CNN has become part of a high-stakes game of business acquisition, not as a question of what helps the news-consuming public.
“Here is one more case of the fundamental flaws with origins in decades of policy decisions,” said Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the Pennsylvania University.
The conjecture about who will own Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a more important point.
“It is often framed as a financial tale with influential figures as the central actors, but there is very little discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard added.
The Complicating Layer: Political Influence
The network's predicament is further muddied by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his primary “fake news” foe.
Recall the chants of “CNN sucks!” at his rallies, his administration's retaliatory revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in White House briefings.
Trump now claims that CNN needs new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will protect him from criticism and scrutiny. That is one reason why he appears to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
He has grounds to like that company more. For one thing, it is led by David Ellison, son of the pro-Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
The company, parent of CBS News, also recently placed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that storied news network.
An Outcome of Continued Turmoil
Notably, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a standalone company. This might be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s far from a guarantee of stability. That structure could position CNN for a future sale. It never ends.
If you ask Timothy Wu, a lot of this is against the law, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that anti-trust laws should prohibit both deals.
“Either merger would be bad for the country, and both should be contested by anti-trust authorities,” Wu argued.
The Core Challenge and a Way Ahead
Whatever happens with this particular battle, the larger issue endures.
“What we have now is a highly structure that undermines democracy, but we shouldn’t give in to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard emphasized. Regulatory choices – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this overly commercial monster, and revised policy decisions can address it.
Will that happen in an era where the top communications regulator won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Reform is highly improbable now, but that doesn’t mean it will never happen.
Initiatives that support independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, fund public media, and prevent the accumulation of media power in too few hands are achievable – they are vital for a functioning democracy.
In the world of media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations like CNN cannot be pawns in the most recent corporate chess match.
