On Thursday evening, while unconfirmed reports spread concerning an incident at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, highlighting the uncertainty and directing people to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Although CNN is certainly not a perfect news source, her statement rang true for numerous observers. It is one of the outlets where you can find grounded and generally dependable reporting – notably during crises such as the one taking place close to a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious State Amid a Corporate Battle
But the news network, now middle-aged, finds itself in a precarious situation as two huge media corporations compete for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
Whatever the outcome, the destiny of CNN has become part of a major game of business acquisition, instead of as a question of what serves the information-seeking public.
“This is yet another example of the deep structural problems with origins in decades of governmental choices,” said Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the Pennsylvania University.
The conjecture about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – misses a broader point.
“It is often framed as a corporate drama with powerful individuals as the protagonists, but there is hardly any discussion of the common good,” Pickard explained.
The Complicating Layer: Donald Trump
This situation is made more complex by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his chief “fake news” antagonist.
Remember the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his administration's retaliatory withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in official meetings.
Trump now asserts that CNN needs new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will shield him from journalistic oversight. That is a factor in why he seems to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.
Trump has reason to like that suitor more. For one thing, it is run by David Ellison, son of the pro-Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
Paramount, parent of CBS News, also recently appointed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that storied news network.
An Outcome of Continued Turmoil
Significantly, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a separate entity. This might be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s not exactly a secure position. That setup could set up CNN for yet another acquisition. The cycle continues.
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 competition laws should disallow both deals.
“Either merger would be bad for the country, and both should be opposed by the government,” Wu argued.
The Core Challenge and a Way Ahead
No matter the outcome regarding CNN, the bigger problem endures.
“The present media landscape is a profoundly system hostile to democracy, but we ought not succumb to learned helplessness,” Pickard said. Policy decisions – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this hyper-commercialized monster, and revised policy decisions can address it.
Will that happen in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Reform is a distant prospect now, but that should not imply it will never happen.
Measures that bolster independent news organizations, aid local journalism, finance public media, and outlaw the concentration of media power in a handful of hands are within reach – they are essential for a healthy democracy.
When it comes to media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations like CNN must not be pawns in the latest acquisition battle.
