Late Thursday, as rumors swirled concerning an incident at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins used social media, pointing out the conflicting information and pointing viewers to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Even though it is by no means a impeccable news source, her statement seemed accurate for a lot of people. It remains one of the broadcasters where you can find fact-based and generally dependable reporting – particularly during crises like the one taking place close to a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable Situation Amid a High-Stakes Struggle
Yet CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a uncertain situation as two giant media empires compete for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Whatever the outcome, the fate of CNN has turned into a high-risk game of mergers and acquisitions, instead of as a question of what serves the information-seeking public.
“This represents another instance of the fundamental flaws with origins in many years of governmental choices,” noted Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the University of Pennsylvania.
The conjecture about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a broader point.
“The narrative is crafted as a business story with powerful individuals as the central actors, but there is very little discussion of the common good,” Pickard said.
The Additional Factor: Donald Trump
The CNN scenario is made more complex by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his primary “fake news” adversary.
Remember the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his team's disciplinary suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in press briefings.
Trump now says that CNN needs new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will protect him from journalistic oversight. That is a factor in why he seems to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
Trump has reason to prefer that company 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, parent of CBS News, also recently placed the conservative Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that historic news network.
A Future of Continued Uncertainty
Notably, if Netflix is successful, 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 far from a safe harbor. That setup could position CNN for yet another acquisition. There is no finish line.
In the view of Timothy Wu, a lot of this is against the law, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance recently argued that competition laws should block both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be harmful to the country, and both should be contested by regulators,” Wu stated.
The Core Issue and a Path Forward
No matter the outcome with this particular battle, the bigger problem remains.
“Our current system is a very structure that undermines democracy, but we must resist learned helplessness,” Pickard said. Regulatory choices – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this overly commercial 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? Change is very unlikely now, but that should not imply it will never happen.
Measures that support independent news organizations, aid local journalism, fund public media, and outlaw the consolidation of media power in too few hands are not only possible – they are essential for a healthy democracy.
When it comes to media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations including CNN shouldn’t be pieces in the most recent acquisition battle.
