On Thursday evening, as rumors swirled about an incident at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins used social media, noting the confusion and directing people to her network’s 9pm newscast.
Even though it is by no means a perfect news source, her message seemed accurate to many. It is one of the broadcasters where you can find fact-based and largely reliable reporting – notably during fast-moving events such as the one unfolding in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious State During a Corporate Battle
Yet the news network, now middle-aged, finds itself in a vulnerable position as two massive media corporations battle over ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Whatever the outcome, the fate of CNN has been drawn into a major game of corporate ownership, instead of as a question of what helps the news-consuming public.
“This represents another instance of the profound systemic issues with origins in many years of governmental choices,” said Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the University of Pennsylvania.
The speculation about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a broader point.
“It is often framed as a business story with powerful individuals as the main characters, but there is hardly any discussion of the public interest,” Pickard added.
The Additional Layer: The Former President
The CNN scenario is made more complex by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his chief “fake news” foe.
Recall the cries 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 White House briefings.
Trump now says that the network requires new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will protect him from journalistic oversight. That is a factor in why he appears to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.
Trump has reason to favor that suitor more. For one thing, it is led by David Ellison, son of the Trump-friendly Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
The company, owner of CBS News, also recently placed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that historic news network.
An Outcome of Further Uncertainty
Significantly, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a independent unit. This might be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s hardly a guarantee of stability. That setup could position CNN for yet another acquisition. It never ends.
In the view of Timothy Wu, much of this is illegal, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that competition laws should block both deals.
“Both acquisition attempts would be bad for the country, and both should be challenged by regulators,” Wu stated.
The Bigger Issue and a Way Ahead
Regardless of the resolution with this particular battle, the larger issue persists.
“Our current system is a profoundly anti-democratic system, but we ought not succumb to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard said. Policy decisions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this hyper-commercialized monster, and different policy decisions can fix it.
Can reform occur in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Reform is very unlikely now, but that doesn’t mean it will never happen.
Measures that bolster independent news organizations, aid local journalism, subsidize public media, and outlaw the accumulation of media power in a handful of hands are within reach – they are necessary for a healthy democracy.
In the world of media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations such as CNN cannot be pieces in the latest acquisition battle.
