This past Thursday night, as rumors swirled regarding the Brown University gunman, the network's Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, noting the confusion and directing people to her channel's 9pm newscast.
While it is by no means a impeccable news source, her message resonated to many. It is one of the organizations where one can locate fact-based and generally trustworthy reporting – particularly during breaking news situations such as the one unfolding in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.
An Uncertain State Amid a High-Stakes Struggle
But the news network, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a precarious position as two massive media corporations compete for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
Regardless of who wins, the fate of CNN has been drawn into a major game of mergers and acquisitions, instead of as a question of what serves the information-seeking public.
“Here is one more case of the deep structural problems with origins in many years of policy decisions,” stated Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the University of Pennsylvania.
The conjecture about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a larger point.
“It is often framed as a corporate drama with key players as the main characters, but there is scant discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard said.
A Further Element: Political Influence
The network's predicament is complicated by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his chief “fake news” foe.
Remember the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his team's disciplinary revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in official meetings.
Trump now claims that CNN needs new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will protect him from negative coverage and examination. That is part of why he appears to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.
Trump has reason to favor that company more. For one thing, it is controlled by David Ellison, son of the pro-Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
Paramount, owner of CBS News, also recently placed the conservative Bari Weiss, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that historic news network.
A Possibility of Continued Turmoil
Significantly, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a standalone company. That would be a relief to many at the network, but it’s far from a safe harbor. That setup could set up CNN for yet another acquisition. The cycle continues.
If you ask Timothy Wu, much of this is against the law, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance stated that anti-trust laws should block both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be harmful to the country, and both should be challenged by anti-trust authorities,” Wu recently wrote.
The Core Issue and a Potential Solution
No matter the outcome regarding CNN, the underlying crisis endures.
“Our current system is a profoundly anti-democratic system, but we shouldn’t give in to learned helplessness,” Pickard emphasized. Policy decisions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this hyper-commercialized monster, and different policy decisions can address it.
Will that happen in an era where the top communications regulator will not confirm that the agency is independent? Change is very unlikely now, but that doesn’t mean it will be impossible forever.
Initiatives that bolster independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, fund public media, and prohibit the consolidation of media power in too few hands are achievable – they are essential for a healthy democracy.
In the world of media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations like CNN must not be tools in the newest corporate chess match.
