Late Thursday, while unconfirmed reports spread about the Brown University gunman, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins used social media, noting the confusion and guiding the public to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Even though the network is hardly a flawless news source, her message seemed accurate for a lot of people. It remains one of the broadcasters where one can locate fact-based and generally reliable reporting – especially during breaking news situations like the one taking place in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious Position Amid a Business Battle
However CNN, now middle-aged, finds itself in a uncertain position as two massive media conglomerates compete for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the fate of CNN has become part of a major game of business acquisition, instead of as a question of what helps the information-seeking public.
“This is yet another example of the profound systemic issues with origins in decades of policy decisions,” said Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the Penn.
The conjecture about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a larger point.
“The narrative is crafted as a financial tale with key players as the protagonists, but there is scant discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard said.
The Additional Layer: Donald Trump
This situation is complicated by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his main “fake news” adversary.
Think back to the cries of “CNN sucks!” at his rallies, his team's disciplinary suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in official meetings.
Trump now asserts that the network requires new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will insulate him from criticism and scrutiny. That is one reason why he appears to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
He has grounds to prefer that suitor 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, owner of CBS News, also recently appointed the conservative Bari Weiss, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that venerable news network.
A Future of More Turmoil
Notably, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a standalone company. 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.
In the view of Timothy Wu, much of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance stated that anti-trust laws should prohibit both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be detrimental to the country, and both should be contested by the government,” Wu recently wrote.
The Bigger Issue and a Potential Solution
Regardless of the resolution in this situation, the bigger problem remains.
“Our current system is a profoundly structure that undermines democracy, but we must resist learned helplessness,” Pickard emphasized. Regulatory choices – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this overly commercial monster, and different policy decisions can address it.
Is this likely in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Change is very unlikely now, but that should not imply it will not happen in the future.
Initiatives that bolster independent news organizations, aid local journalism, fund public media, and prohibit the accumulation of media power in too few hands are achievable – they are essential for a functioning democracy.
In the world of media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations such as CNN must not be pieces in the most recent merger game.
