On Thursday evening, while unconfirmed reports spread about an incident at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, highlighting the uncertainty and guiding the public to her channel's 9pm newscast.
While it is by no means a perfect news source, her words seemed accurate to many. It stands as one of the outlets where one can locate fact-based and mostly trustworthy reporting – particularly during crises like the one unfolding close to a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious State During a Business Struggle
Yet CNN, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a uncertain situation as two huge media empires compete for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the destiny of CNN has been drawn into a high-risk game of mergers and acquisitions, instead of as a question of what serves the news-consuming public.
“Here is one more case of the profound systemic issues with roots in many years of regulatory actions,” noted Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the University of Pennsylvania.
The debate about who will own Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a larger point.
“It gets presented as a business story with powerful individuals as the central actors, but there is scant discussion of the public interest,” Pickard added.
The Additional Factor: The Former President
The network's predicament is further muddied by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his main “fake news” antagonist.
Remember the chants of “CNN sucks!” at his rallies, his administration’s punitive withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in press briefings.
Trump now says that CNN needs new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will protect him from negative coverage and examination. That is part of why he appears to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.
There is a basis to favor that company more. For one thing, it is run 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 appointed the conservative Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that venerable news network.
An Outcome of Further Uncertainty
It is important to note, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off 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 pave the way for CNN for yet another acquisition. It never ends.
In the view of Timothy Wu, a lot of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that competition laws should prohibit both deals.
“Either merger would be harmful to the country, and both should be opposed by the government,” Wu argued.
The Fundamental Issue and a Way Ahead
Regardless of the resolution with this particular battle, the larger issue remains.
“Our current system is a highly anti-democratic system, but we shouldn’t give in to the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard noted. Regulatory choices – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this profit-obsessed monster, and different policy decisions can tackle it.
Will that happen in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair will not confirm that the agency is independent? Change is a distant prospect now, but that is not to say it will not happen in the future.
Initiatives that bolster independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, subsidize public media, and prohibit the concentration of media power in a handful of hands are within reach – they are vital for a functioning democracy.
When it comes to media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations such as CNN shouldn’t be pawns in the most recent acquisition battle.
