On Thursday evening, while unconfirmed reports spread regarding the Brown University gunman, the network's Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, pointing out the conflicting information and directing people to her channel's 9pm newscast.
While it is by no means a flawless news source, her message resonated for a lot of people. It stands as one of the organizations where one can locate reality-based and generally trustworthy reporting – particularly during breaking news situations such as the one taking place near a New Hampshire storage facility.
An Uncertain Position Amid a High-Stakes Tug-of-War
But the news network, now middle-aged, finds itself in a precarious state as two massive media empires 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 mergers and acquisitions, instead of as a question of what helps the information-seeking public.
“This represents another instance of the fundamental flaws with origins 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 debate about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a broader point.
“It gets presented as a business story with influential figures as the central actors, but there is scant discussion of the public interest,” Pickard said.
A Further Layer: Political Influence
This situation is made more complex by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his primary “fake news” foe.
Think back to the cries of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his administration's retaliatory withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in White House briefings.
Trump now claims that CNN needs new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will protect him from negative coverage and examination. That is a factor in why he appears to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.
There is a basis to like that suitor more. For one thing, it is controlled by David Ellison, son of the Trump-friendly Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
Paramount, parent of CBS News, also recently appointed the conservative Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that venerable news network.
A Future of Further Turmoil
Notably, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a standalone company. That would be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s hardly a guarantee of stability. That structure could position CNN for yet another acquisition. It never ends.
According to Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is illegal, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that anti-trust laws should prohibit both deals.
“Both acquisition attempts would be harmful to the country, and both should be challenged by anti-trust authorities,” Wu recently wrote.
The Fundamental Issue and a Potential Solution
Regardless of the resolution in this situation, the underlying crisis persists.
“What we have now is a highly anti-democratic system, but we ought not succumb to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard noted. Government actions – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this hyper-commercialized monster, and revised policy decisions can tackle it.
Will that happen in an era where the top communications regulator won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Overhaul is highly improbable now, but that should not imply it will not happen in the future.
Initiatives that bolster independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, finance public media, and prohibit the concentration of media power in a handful of hands are within reach – they are vital for a healthy democracy.
Regarding media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations such as CNN must not be pieces in the newest corporate chess match.
