Late Thursday, amid swirling speculation regarding a shooting at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins used social media, highlighting the uncertainty and directing people to her network’s 9pm newscast.
While it is by no means a perfect news source, her statement resonated for numerous observers. It remains one of the organizations where you can find fact-based and generally dependable reporting – notably during breaking news situations such as the one developing near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable Situation During a Corporate Struggle
Yet the news network, now 45 years old, finds itself in a vulnerable situation as two huge 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 business acquisition, instead of as a question of what helps the information-seeking public.
“This is yet another example of the profound systemic issues with origins in decades of policy decisions,” stated Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the Pennsylvania University.
The speculation about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a more important point.
“The narrative is crafted as a corporate drama with powerful individuals as the main characters, but there is scant discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard said.
The Additional Layer: The Former President
The network's predicament is complicated by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his main “fake news” adversary.
Remember the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's 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. 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.
Trump has reason to prefer that suitor more. For one thing, it is run by David Ellison, son of the pro-Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
The company, parent of CBS News, also recently appointed the conservative Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that venerable news network.
A Possibility of Continued Uncertainty
Significantly, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a standalone company. This might be a relief to many at the network, but it’s hardly a guarantee of stability. That arrangement could pave the way for CNN for another sale. It never ends.
In the view of Timothy Wu, much of this is illegal, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance stated that anti-trust laws should prohibit both deals.
“Either merger would be detrimental to the country, and both should be opposed by the government,” Wu stated.
The Fundamental Challenge and a Way Ahead
Whatever happens in this situation, the bigger problem remains.
“What we have now is a highly structure that undermines democracy, but we must resist the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard emphasized. Government actions – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this hyper-commercialized monster, and new policy decisions can address it.
Is this likely in an era where the top communications regulator will not confirm that the agency is independent? Change is a distant prospect now, but that should not imply it will be impossible forever.
Policies that support independent news organizations, aid local journalism, fund public media, and prohibit the consolidation of media power in very few hands are achievable – they are necessary for a robust democracy.
When it comes to media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations including CNN cannot be tools in the latest corporate chess match.
