Late Thursday, amid swirling speculation about the Brown University gunman, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins used social media, pointing out the conflicting information and pointing viewers to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Even though the network is hardly a impeccable news source, her message seemed accurate for a lot of people. It stands as one of the organizations where you can find reality-based and generally dependable reporting – notably during breaking news situations such as the one taking place near a New Hampshire storage facility.
An Uncertain Situation Amid a High-Stakes Struggle
But CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a vulnerable state as two giant media empires compete for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Regardless of who wins, the fate of CNN has been drawn into a high-risk game of mergers and acquisitions, rather than as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.
“This represents another instance of the fundamental flaws with roots in decades of policy decisions,” said Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the Pennsylvania University.
The debate about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a larger point.
“The narrative is crafted as a business story with powerful individuals as the protagonists, but there is very little discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard added.
The Additional Element: The Former President
The network's predicament is complicated 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 his rallies, his administration's retaliatory suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in press briefings.
Trump now says that the network requires new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will protect him from negative coverage and examination. That is part of why he seems to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.
Trump has reason to favor that company more. For one thing, it is run by David Ellison, son of the pro-Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
The company, parent of CBS News, also recently appointed the conservative Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that venerable news network.
A Future of Further Instability
Significantly, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a separate entity. That would be a relief to many at the network, but it’s far from a secure position. That setup could position CNN for another sale. The cycle continues.
If you ask Timothy Wu, a lot of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance recently argued that anti-trust laws should disallow both deals.
“Either merger would be harmful to the country, and both should be challenged by regulators,” Wu stated.
The Bigger Challenge and a Way Ahead
No matter the outcome with this particular battle, the bigger problem persists.
“What we have now is a highly system hostile to democracy, but we shouldn’t give in to learned helplessness,” Pickard said. Government actions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this overly commercial monster, and revised policy decisions can fix it.
Can reform occur in an era where the top communications regulator will not confirm that the agency is independent? Change is highly improbable now, but that should not imply it will never happen.
Initiatives that strengthen independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, subsidize public media, and prevent the consolidation of media power in very few hands are not only possible – they are essential for a healthy democracy.
Regarding media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations like CNN shouldn’t be pieces in the newest acquisition battle.
