This past Thursday night, as rumors swirled regarding a shooting at Brown University, CNN’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 statement rang true for a lot of people. It is one of the outlets where one can locate grounded and largely reliable reporting – particularly during breaking news situations such as the one unfolding close to a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious Situation Amid a High-Stakes Battle
But the news network, now 45 years old, finds itself in a precarious position as two huge media corporations battle over ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the destiny of CNN has turned into a high-risk game of business acquisition, not as a question of what serves the news-consuming public.
“This is yet another example of the fundamental flaws with roots in many years of policy decisions,” noted Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the Penn.
The speculation about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a more important point.
“The narrative is crafted as a financial tale with influential figures as the protagonists, but there is scant discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard said.
The Complicating Layer: Donald Trump
The CNN scenario is complicated by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his main “fake news” antagonist.
Think back to the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at his rallies, his administration’s punitive withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in White House briefings.
Trump now asserts that the network requires new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will shield him from negative coverage and examination. That is one reason why he seems to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.
He has grounds to prefer that bidder 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, parent of CBS News, also recently appointed the conservative Bari Weiss, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that historic news network.
A Possibility of More Turmoil
Significantly, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a standalone company. That would be a relief to many at the network, but it’s not exactly a guarantee of stability. That setup could set up CNN for another sale. It never ends.
If you ask Timothy Wu, much 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.
“Both acquisition attempts would be bad for the country, and both should be opposed by regulators,” Wu stated.
The Bigger Problem and a Path Forward
No matter the outcome with this particular battle, the underlying crisis remains.
“Our current system is a very structure that undermines democracy, but we must resist learned helplessness,” Pickard emphasized. Government actions – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this profit-obsessed monster, and different policy decisions can address it.
Can reform occur in an era where the head of the FCC won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Overhaul is a distant prospect now, but that should not imply it will be impossible forever.
Measures that support independent news organizations, aid local journalism, fund public media, and prevent the concentration of media power in very few hands are within reach – they are essential for a robust democracy.
Regarding media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations including CNN cannot be tools in the newest acquisition battle.
