On Thursday evening, while unconfirmed reports spread regarding an incident at Brown University, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins took to social media, noting the confusion and directing people to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Although CNN is certainly not a flawless news source, her statement rang true for numerous observers. It remains one of the outlets where one can locate grounded and generally dependable reporting – particularly during breaking news situations like the one unfolding near a New Hampshire storage facility.
An Uncertain Situation Amid a Business Tug-of-War
However CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a vulnerable position as two huge media conglomerates battle over ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Whatever the outcome, the destiny of CNN has become part of a major game of mergers and acquisitions, not as a question of what serves the information-seeking public.
“This is yet another example of the fundamental flaws with roots in many years of governmental choices,” noted Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the University of Pennsylvania.
The speculation about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a broader point.
“It gets presented as a business story with powerful individuals as the main characters, but there is very little discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard said.
The Additional Layer: Political Influence
The network's predicament is made more complex by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his primary “fake news” adversary.
Think back to the chants of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his team's disciplinary withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in official meetings.
Trump now says that CNN needs new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will protect him from negative coverage and examination. That is part of why he seems to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.
There is a basis to prefer that suitor more. For one thing, it is led by David Ellison, son of the ally of Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
The company, parent of CBS News, also recently appointed the conservative Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that storied news network.
An Outcome of Further Uncertainty
Significantly, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a standalone company. This might 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 another sale. The cycle continues.
In the view of Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance stated that competition laws should prohibit both deals.
“Either merger would be detrimental to the country, and both should be opposed by the government,” Wu recently wrote.
The Fundamental Issue and a Path Forward
No matter the outcome in this situation, the larger issue persists.
“The present media landscape is a very anti-democratic system, but we ought not succumb to learned helplessness,” Pickard said. Policy decisions – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this profit-obsessed monster, and revised policy decisions can tackle it.
Is this likely in an era where the top communications regulator refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Overhaul is highly improbable now, but that should not imply it will be impossible forever.
Measures that bolster independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, fund public media, and prevent the consolidation of media power in a handful of hands are not only possible – they are essential for a functioning democracy.
In the world of media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations such as CNN must not be pawns in the latest acquisition battle.
