On Thursday evening, amid swirling speculation regarding the Brown University gunman, the network's Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, noting the confusion and guiding the public to her network’s 9pm newscast.
Even though it is by no means a perfect news source, her message seemed accurate for a lot of people. It stands as one of the organizations where you can find reality-based and mostly reliable reporting – particularly during fast-moving events like the one developing near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable Situation Amid a Corporate Battle
However the news network, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a uncertain position as two massive media conglomerates battle over ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Regardless of who wins, the fate of CNN has become part of a high-risk game of corporate ownership, not as a question of what helps the news-consuming public.
“Here is one more case of the deep structural problems with roots in decades of regulatory actions,” noted 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 – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – misses a larger point.
“It is often framed as a corporate drama with influential figures as the protagonists, but there is very little discussion of the public interest,” Pickard explained.
A Further Layer: Political Influence
This situation is made more complex by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his chief “fake news” antagonist.
Recall the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his team's disciplinary revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in press briefings.
Trump now claims that CNN needs new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will protect him from journalistic oversight. That is part of why he appears to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.
There is a basis to prefer that company 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.
The company, owner of CBS News, also recently appointed the conservative Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that historic news network.
An Outcome of Continued Uncertainty
Significantly, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a standalone company. That would be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s hardly a secure position. That structure could pave the way for CNN for yet another acquisition. The cycle continues.
If you ask Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is against the law, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that anti-trust laws should disallow both deals.
“Either merger would be harmful to the country, and both should be opposed by the government,” Wu argued.
The Core Issue and a Path Forward
No matter the outcome regarding CNN, the larger issue persists.
“Our current system is a profoundly anti-democratic system, but we must resist learned helplessness,” Pickard said. Regulatory choices – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this overly commercial monster, and different policy decisions can fix it.
Will that happen in an era where the head of the FCC won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Reform is very unlikely now, but that doesn’t mean it will not happen in the future.
Policies that strengthen independent news organizations, aid local journalism, subsidize public media, and outlaw the consolidation of media power in very few hands are not only possible – they are necessary for a robust democracy.
When it comes to media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations like CNN cannot be pieces in the most recent merger game.
