On Thursday evening, while unconfirmed reports spread regarding a shooting at Brown University, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins used social media, highlighting the uncertainty and guiding the public to her network’s 9pm newscast.
Even though it is by no means a flawless news source, her statement rang true to many. It stands as one of the outlets where one can locate grounded and largely trustworthy reporting – especially during crises like the one unfolding close to a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable Position Amid a High-Stakes Struggle
But CNN, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a uncertain position as two giant media conglomerates vie for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Regardless of who wins, the future of CNN has become part of a high-stakes game of business acquisition, not as a question of what benefits the news-consuming public.
“This is yet another example of the deep structural problems with origins in decades of policy decisions,” said Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the Penn.
The debate about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a broader point.
“It is often framed as a financial tale with key players as the main characters, but there is scant discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard explained.
The Complicating Factor: The Former President
This situation is complicated by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his main “fake news” adversary.
Remember the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at his rallies, his administration's retaliatory suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in official meetings.
Trump now claims that the network requires new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will protect him from criticism and scrutiny. That is a factor in why he appears to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.
He has grounds to prefer that bidder 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, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that storied news network.
A Possibility of Further Instability
It is important to note, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a independent unit. That would be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s hardly a secure position. That structure could position CNN for a future sale. It never ends.
According to Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is against the law, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance recently argued that anti-trust laws should block both deals.
“Both acquisition attempts would be detrimental to the country, and both should be opposed by the government,” Wu recently wrote.
The Core Challenge and a Potential Solution
Whatever happens regarding CNN, the bigger problem endures.
“Our current system is a very system hostile to democracy, but we must resist the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard emphasized. Regulatory choices – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this hyper-commercialized monster, and new policy decisions can address it.
Can reform occur in an era where the top communications regulator won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Change is highly improbable now, but that is not to say it will never happen.
Measures that support independent news organizations, aid local journalism, subsidize public media, and outlaw the consolidation of media power in a handful of hands are not only possible – they are necessary for a robust democracy.
Regarding media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations including CNN cannot be tools in the most recent merger game.
