On Thursday evening, as rumors swirled about a shooting at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, pointing out the conflicting information and pointing viewers to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Even though CNN is certainly not a impeccable news source, her statement rang true for a lot of people. It remains one of the organizations where one can locate fact-based and generally trustworthy reporting – especially during fast-moving events like the one developing near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable Situation Amid a High-Stakes Struggle
Yet CNN, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a precarious situation as two huge media conglomerates compete for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
Whatever the outcome, the future of CNN has become part of a high-stakes game of corporate ownership, rather than as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.
“This is yet another example of the fundamental flaws with origins in many years of governmental choices,” noted Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the Pennsylvania University.
The debate about who will own Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a broader point.
“The narrative is crafted as a financial tale with key players as the protagonists, but there is hardly any discussion of the common good,” Pickard said.
A Further Layer: Political Influence
The network's predicament is further muddied by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his main “fake news” foe.
Think back to the cries of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his administration's retaliatory suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in official meetings.
Trump now claims that the network requires new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will shield him from criticism and scrutiny. That is one reason why he seems to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
There is a basis to favor that company more. For one thing, it is controlled 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 placed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that historic news network.
A Possibility of Continued Instability
Significantly, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a standalone company. Such a move could be a relief to many at the network, but it’s hardly a guarantee of stability. That arrangement could position CNN for yet another acquisition. There is no finish line.
According to Timothy Wu, much of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that competition laws should disallow both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be detrimental to the country, and both should be challenged by anti-trust authorities,” Wu recently wrote.
The Bigger Challenge and a Way Ahead
Regardless of the resolution with this particular battle, the bigger problem remains.
“What we have now is a profoundly structure that undermines democracy, but we must resist learned helplessness,” Pickard emphasized. Government actions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this overly commercial monster, and different policy decisions can fix it.
Is this likely in an era where the top communications regulator refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Change is highly improbable now, but that should not imply it will not happen in the future.
Initiatives that support independent news organizations, aid local journalism, finance public media, and prevent the consolidation of media power in too few hands are not only possible – they are vital for a robust democracy.
When it comes to media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations like CNN must not be pawns in the latest acquisition battle.
