🔗 Share this article

This past Thursday night, while unconfirmed reports spread concerning the Brown University gunman, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, noting the confusion and pointing viewers to her network’s 9pm newscast.

Even though it is by no means a flawless news source, her message rang true for numerous observers. It stands as one of the broadcasters where one can locate grounded and mostly trustworthy reporting – particularly during crises like the one taking place in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.

A Precarious State During a Corporate Battle

Yet CNN, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a uncertain situation as two giant media corporations compete for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.

Whatever the outcome, the future of CNN has turned into a major game of mergers and acquisitions, rather than as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.

“This represents another instance of the profound systemic issues with origins in many years of governmental choices,” noted Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the Pennsylvania University.

The conjecture about who will own Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a broader point.

“The narrative is crafted as a financial tale with influential figures as the protagonists, but there is very little discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard added.

The Additional Element: Donald Trump

This situation is made more complex by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his main “fake news” adversary.

Think back to the cries of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his team's disciplinary revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in official meetings.

Trump now asserts that CNN needs new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will protect him from negative coverage and examination. That is one reason why he seems to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.

Trump has reason to like that company more. For one thing, it is led by David Ellison, son of the pro-Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.

Paramount, owner of CBS News, also recently installed the conservative Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that storied news network.

A Possibility of More Uncertainty

Notably, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a separate entity. That would be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s not exactly a secure position. That structure could set up CNN for another sale. There is no finish line.

If you ask Timothy Wu, a lot of this is against the law, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance recently argued that competition laws should prohibit both deals.

“Either merger would be bad for the country, and both should be contested by the government,” Wu recently wrote.

The Bigger Problem and a Way Ahead

Whatever happens in this situation, the underlying crisis endures.

“What we have now is a very structure that undermines democracy, but we ought not succumb to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard said. Policy decisions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this overly commercial monster, and new policy decisions can tackle it.

Can reform occur in an era where the top communications regulator will not confirm that the agency is independent? Overhaul is a distant prospect now, but that doesn’t mean it will not happen in the future.

Measures that support independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, subsidize public media, and prevent the accumulation of media power in very few hands are not only possible – they are vital for a functioning democracy.

In the world of media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations including CNN shouldn’t be pawns in the newest corporate chess match.