This past Thursday night, as rumors swirled about an incident at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins took to social media, noting the confusion and guiding the public to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Even though it is by no means a flawless news source, her statement seemed accurate for a lot of people. It remains one of the organizations where one can locate fact-based and generally dependable reporting – particularly during fast-moving events like the one taking place in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious Position During a Corporate Battle
However CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a uncertain state as two massive media conglomerates compete for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the destiny of CNN has turned into a high-stakes game of corporate ownership, instead of as a question of what helps the news-consuming public.
“This represents another instance of the profound systemic issues with roots in decades of policy decisions,” noted Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the Pennsylvania University.
The debate about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a larger point.
“It is often framed as a financial tale with powerful individuals as the central actors, but there is hardly any discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard said.
The Complicating Factor: The Former President
This situation is made more complex by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his main “fake news” adversary.
Remember the cries of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his team's disciplinary suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in press briefings.
Trump now says that CNN needs new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will protect him from journalistic oversight. That is part of why he appears to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
Trump has reason to like that company more. For one thing, it is led by David Ellison, son of the pro-Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
Paramount, parent of CBS News, also recently placed the conservative Bari Weiss, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that historic news network.
A Possibility of More Uncertainty
It is important to note, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a independent unit. That would be a relief to many at the network, but it’s hardly a guarantee of stability. That structure could pave the way for CNN for another sale. There is no finish line.
According to Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is illegal, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that competition laws should block both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be detrimental to the country, and both should be contested by regulators,” Wu argued.
The Fundamental Challenge and a Way Ahead
Whatever happens regarding CNN, the bigger problem remains.
“Our current system is a profoundly structure that undermines democracy, but we must resist a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard noted. Government actions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this profit-obsessed monster, and revised policy decisions can fix 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 is not to say it will never happen.
Initiatives that strengthen independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, subsidize public media, and outlaw the concentration of media power in very few hands are achievable – they are essential for a functioning democracy.
Regarding media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations such as CNN cannot be tools in the newest corporate chess match.
