On Thursday evening, as rumors swirled about an incident at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, highlighting the uncertainty and guiding the public to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Although the network is hardly a impeccable news source, her message rang true for a lot of people. It is one of the organizations where one can locate reality-based and mostly trustworthy reporting – notably during crises such as the one taking place in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious State During a Business Tug-of-War
Yet CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a vulnerable situation as two huge media conglomerates compete for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Regardless of who wins, the fate of CNN has turned into a major game of corporate ownership, rather than as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.
“This represents another instance of the deep structural problems with origins in many years of governmental choices,” said Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the Penn.
The conjecture about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a broader point.
“It is often framed as a corporate drama with key players as the protagonists, but there is very little discussion of the common good,” Pickard said.
The Additional Factor: Donald Trump
This situation is made more complex by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his primary “fake news” antagonist.
Remember the cries of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his team's disciplinary revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in official meetings.
Trump now says that the network requires new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will protect him from negative coverage and examination. That is one reason why he seems to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
He has grounds to favor that suitor 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, owner of CBS News, also recently appointed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that venerable news network.
An Outcome of Further Turmoil
Significantly, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a separate entity. This might be a relief to many at the network, but it’s far from a secure position. That setup could set up CNN for a future sale. There is no finish line.
If you ask Timothy Wu, a lot of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance stated that anti-trust laws should block both deals.
“Either merger would be harmful to the country, and both should be contested by regulators,” Wu recently wrote.
The Bigger Issue and a Path Forward
Regardless of the resolution in this situation, the bigger problem persists.
“Our current system is a profoundly system hostile to democracy, but we shouldn’t give in to learned helplessness,” Pickard emphasized. Regulatory choices – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this hyper-commercialized monster, and different policy decisions can address it.
Is this likely in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Reform is very unlikely now, but that should not imply it will never happen.
Initiatives that support independent news organizations, aid local journalism, subsidize public media, and prohibit the accumulation of media power in too few hands are not only possible – they are essential for a functioning democracy.
When it comes to media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations like CNN must not be pieces in the newest acquisition battle.
