Late Thursday, while unconfirmed reports spread concerning a shooting at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins took to social media, highlighting the uncertainty and guiding the public to her network’s 9pm newscast.
While CNN is certainly not a perfect news source, her statement resonated to many. It remains one of the outlets where one can locate fact-based and generally dependable reporting – especially during breaking news situations such as the one developing close to a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious Situation Amid a Business Battle
Yet CNN, now middle-aged, finds itself in a vulnerable state as two huge media conglomerates compete for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the fate of CNN has turned into a high-stakes game of corporate ownership, not as a question of what helps the news-consuming public.
“Here is one more case of the fundamental flaws with origins in many years of regulatory actions,” noted Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the Pennsylvania University.
The speculation about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – misses a more important point.
“It gets presented as a business story with powerful individuals as the central actors, but there is very little discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard explained.
The Additional Factor: Donald Trump
The network's predicament is made more complex by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his main “fake news” antagonist.
Think back to the chants 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 White House briefings.
Trump now asserts 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 seems to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.
There is a basis to favor that bidder 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, parent of CBS News, also recently installed the conservative Bari Weiss, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that storied news network.
A Future of More Uncertainty
Notably, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a standalone company. This might be a relief to many at the network, but it’s far from a secure position. That setup could pave the way for CNN for a future sale. There is no finish line.
In the view of Timothy Wu, a lot of this is illegal, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance stated that competition laws should block both deals.
“Either merger would be detrimental to the country, and both should be challenged by the government,” Wu argued.
The Core Problem and a Potential Solution
Regardless of the resolution regarding CNN, the underlying crisis persists.
“The present media landscape is a profoundly anti-democratic system, but we shouldn’t give in to learned helplessness,” Pickard noted. Policy decisions – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this overly commercial monster, and new policy decisions can fix it.
Is this likely in an era where the head of the FCC won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Overhaul is a distant prospect now, but that doesn’t mean it will not happen in the future.
Initiatives that bolster independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, subsidize public media, and prohibit the accumulation of media power in very few hands are not only possible – they are essential for a robust democracy.
Regarding media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations including CNN cannot be pawns in the most recent merger game.
