On Thursday evening, as rumors swirled regarding the Brown University gunman, the network's Kaitlan Collins used social media, pointing out the conflicting information and directing people to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Although it is by no means a perfect news source, her statement seemed accurate for numerous observers. It stands as one of the organizations where one can locate grounded and mostly dependable reporting – notably during crises such as the one developing near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious State During a Corporate Battle
However CNN, now middle-aged, finds itself in a uncertain state as two giant media corporations battle over ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the destiny of CNN has turned into a major game of corporate ownership, rather than as a question of what serves the information-seeking public.
“This is yet another example of the profound systemic issues with roots in many years of governmental choices,” noted Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the Penn.
The conjecture about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – misses a more important point.
“It is often framed as a financial tale with powerful individuals as the main characters, but there is scant discussion of the common good,” Pickard added.
The Additional Element: The Former President
This situation is complicated by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his primary “fake news” adversary.
Think back to the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at his rallies, his team's disciplinary revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in official meetings.
Trump now asserts that CNN needs new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will insulate him from journalistic oversight. That is part of why he appears to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
There is a basis to favor 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, owner of CBS News, also recently installed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that venerable news network.
An Outcome of Further Instability
Notably, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a independent unit. Such a move could be a relief to many at the network, but it’s not exactly a guarantee of stability. That setup could pave the way for CNN for another sale. It never ends.
In the view of Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance recently argued that competition laws should block both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be harmful to the country, and both should be challenged by regulators,” Wu argued.
The Fundamental Challenge and a Potential Solution
Whatever happens with this particular battle, the underlying crisis persists.
“The present media landscape is a profoundly anti-democratic system, but we must resist learned helplessness,” Pickard emphasized. Policy decisions – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this hyper-commercialized monster, and revised policy decisions can tackle it.
Can reform occur in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Reform is highly improbable now, but that doesn’t mean it will never happen.
Initiatives that support independent news organizations, aid local journalism, finance public media, and prevent the concentration of media power in too few hands are achievable – they are vital for a functioning democracy.
In the world of media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations like CNN must not be tools in the newest merger game.
