🔗 Share this article

Late Thursday, as rumors swirled about the Brown University gunman, the network's Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, noting the confusion and guiding the public to her channel's 9pm newscast.

Although the network is hardly a perfect news source, her statement rang true for a lot of people. It is one of the organizations where one can locate grounded and mostly dependable reporting – particularly during breaking news situations such as the one taking place close to a New Hampshire storage facility.

An Uncertain State During a Corporate Battle

However CNN, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a vulnerable state as two massive media conglomerates battle over ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.

Whatever the outcome, the fate of CNN has been drawn into a high-stakes game of business acquisition, rather than as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.

“This is yet another example of the profound systemic issues with roots in decades of regulatory actions,” noted Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the University of Pennsylvania.

The debate about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – misses a larger point.

“The narrative is crafted as a business story with powerful individuals as the protagonists, but there is scant discussion of the public interest,” Pickard added.

The Additional Element: Political Influence

The CNN scenario is complicated by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his primary “fake news” adversary.

Recall the cries of “CNN sucks!” at his rallies, his administration’s punitive suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in official meetings.

Trump now asserts that the network requires new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will insulate him from negative coverage and examination. That is part of why he appears to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.

There is a basis to favor 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 placed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that historic news network.

A Future of More Uncertainty

It is important to note, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a standalone company. That would be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s hardly a safe harbor. That arrangement could pave the way for CNN for yet another acquisition. There is no finish line.

If you ask Timothy Wu, a lot of this is against the law, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance stated that competition laws should prohibit both deals.

“Each proposed deal would be detrimental to the country, and both should be opposed by regulators,” Wu stated.

The Fundamental Problem and a Path Forward

Whatever happens with this particular battle, the underlying crisis persists.

“Our current system is a highly system hostile to democracy, but we ought not succumb to the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard emphasized. Government actions – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this profit-obsessed monster, and different policy decisions can address it.

Will that happen in an era where the top communications regulator refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Overhaul is very unlikely now, but that should not imply it will be impossible forever.

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 achievable – they are essential for a functioning democracy.

Regarding media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations like CNN cannot be pieces in the latest merger game.