On Thursday evening, as rumors swirled concerning the Brown University gunman, the network's Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, highlighting the uncertainty and pointing viewers to her channel's 9pm newscast.
While it is by no means a impeccable news source, her message rang true to many. It remains one of the broadcasters where one can locate reality-based and mostly reliable reporting – notably during breaking news situations like the one unfolding in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.
An Uncertain Situation During a High-Stakes Tug-of-War
Yet CNN, now middle-aged, finds itself in a vulnerable situation as two giant media corporations vie for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Regardless of who wins, the destiny of CNN has turned into a high-risk game of business acquisition, instead of as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.
“This is yet another example of the deep structural problems with roots in many years of regulatory actions,” noted Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the Pennsylvania University.
The conjecture about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a more important point.
“It gets presented as a business story with key players as the protagonists, but there is very little discussion of the common good,” Pickard added.
A Further Layer: Political Influence
This situation is further muddied by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his chief “fake news” antagonist.
Remember the chants of “CNN sucks!” at his rallies, his administration’s punitive revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in press briefings.
Trump now says that CNN needs new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will shield him from journalistic oversight. That is part of why he seems to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.
Trump has reason 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.
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 historic news network.
A Future of More Uncertainty
It is important to note, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a standalone company. This might be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s hardly a guarantee of stability. That structure could pave the way for CNN for another sale. It never ends.
In the view of Timothy Wu, much of this is against the law, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance stated that competition laws should block both deals.
“Either merger would be harmful to the country, and both should be challenged by the government,” Wu recently wrote.
The Bigger Problem and a Potential Solution
No matter the outcome with this particular battle, the larger issue persists.
“What we have now is a highly structure that undermines democracy, but we ought not succumb to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard emphasized. Policy decisions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this profit-obsessed monster, and revised policy decisions can fix it.
Is this likely in an era where the top communications regulator refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Change is a distant prospect now, but that doesn’t mean it will not happen in the future.
Initiatives that support independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, finance public media, and prevent the accumulation of media power in too few hands are not only possible – they are necessary for a robust democracy.
When it comes to media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations such as CNN shouldn’t be pieces in the newest corporate chess match.
