This past Thursday night, while unconfirmed reports spread concerning the Brown University gunman, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins took to social media, highlighting the uncertainty and pointing viewers to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Although the network is hardly a flawless news source, her message resonated for numerous observers. It is one of the broadcasters where one can locate fact-based and largely dependable reporting – especially during fast-moving events such as the one developing close to a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable State Amid a Corporate Battle
However the news network, now 45 years old, finds itself in a precarious position as two huge media corporations vie for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
Whatever the outcome, the future of CNN has become part of a major game of corporate ownership, rather than as a question of what helps the news-consuming public.
“Here is one more case of the deep structural problems with origins in decades of policy decisions,” stated Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the Pennsylvania University.
The conjecture about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a larger point.
“It is often framed as a business story with powerful individuals as the central actors, but there is very little discussion of the common good,” Pickard added.
The Complicating Layer: Political Influence
The network's predicament is complicated by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his chief “fake news” adversary.
Remember the chants 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 White House briefings.
Trump now claims that the network requires new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will insulate him from negative coverage and examination. That is a factor in why he seems to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
Trump has reason to favor that bidder more. For one thing, it is led by David Ellison, son of the ally of Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
Paramount, owner of CBS News, also recently installed the conservative Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that venerable news network.
An Outcome of More Uncertainty
Significantly, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a standalone company. That would be a relief to many at the network, but it’s not exactly a guarantee of stability. That arrangement could position CNN for another sale. The cycle continues.
In the view of Timothy Wu, much of this is against the law, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance recently argued that competition laws should disallow both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be bad for the country, and both should be challenged by anti-trust authorities,” Wu stated.
The Core Problem and a Path Forward
Whatever happens in this situation, the larger issue remains.
“The present media landscape is a very system hostile to democracy, but we must resist the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard noted. Regulatory choices – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this overly commercial monster, and new policy decisions can tackle it.
Will that happen in an era where the head of the FCC will not confirm that the agency is independent? Reform is a distant prospect now, but that is not to say it will be impossible forever.
Initiatives that bolster independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, subsidize public media, and outlaw the accumulation of media power in too few hands are achievable – they are necessary for a healthy democracy.
Regarding media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations including CNN cannot be tools in the newest acquisition battle.
