This past Thursday night, as rumors swirled regarding a shooting at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins took to social media, highlighting the uncertainty and directing people to her channel's 9pm newscast.
While it is by no means a impeccable news source, her words seemed accurate to many. It is one of the organizations where one can locate fact-based and generally reliable reporting – especially during fast-moving events like the one taking place close to a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable State Amid a Corporate Battle
Yet CNN, now middle-aged, finds itself in a vulnerable situation as two giant media conglomerates compete for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the future of CNN has become part of a high-stakes game of mergers and acquisitions, instead of as a question of what serves the news-consuming public.
“This is yet another example of the profound systemic issues with roots in many years of regulatory actions,” stated Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the Pennsylvania University.
The debate about who will own Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – misses a larger point.
“It is often framed as a financial tale with key players as the central actors, but there is scant discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard added.
The Additional Factor: The Former President
This situation is further muddied by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his main “fake news” antagonist.
Remember the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at his rallies, his administration’s punitive withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in White House briefings.
Trump now claims that the network requires new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will shield him from journalistic oversight. That is part of why he appears to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
He has grounds to favor that suitor more. For one thing, it is run by David Ellison, son of the Trump-friendly Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
Paramount, owner of CBS News, also recently installed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that storied news network.
A Possibility of Continued Uncertainty
It is important to note, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a independent unit. That would be a relief to many at the network, but it’s far from a guarantee of stability. That setup could pave the way for CNN for yet another acquisition. The cycle continues.
If you ask Timothy Wu, much of this is against the law, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance stated that competition laws should disallow both deals.
“Both acquisition attempts would be bad for the country, and both should be challenged by anti-trust authorities,” Wu argued.
The Fundamental Issue and a Path Forward
No matter the outcome in this situation, the larger issue persists.
“What we have now is a very anti-democratic system, but we ought not succumb to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard said. Regulatory choices – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this profit-obsessed monster, and revised policy decisions can tackle it.
Is this likely in an era where the top communications regulator will not confirm that the agency is independent? Reform is a distant prospect now, but that is not to say it will never happen.
Measures that strengthen independent news organizations, aid local journalism, finance public media, and prohibit the consolidation of media power in too few hands are within reach – they are vital for a functioning democracy.
When it comes to media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations like CNN must not be pieces in the latest corporate chess match.
