On Thursday evening, while unconfirmed reports spread about the Brown University gunman, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, highlighting the uncertainty and pointing viewers to her network’s 9pm newscast.
While CNN is certainly not a perfect news source, her message seemed accurate for numerous observers. It remains one of the organizations where one can locate fact-based and mostly dependable reporting – particularly during breaking news situations such as the one taking place near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious State During a Corporate Struggle
But CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a vulnerable position as two giant media corporations vie for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
Regardless of who wins, the future of CNN has turned into a high-risk game of mergers and acquisitions, not as a question of what serves the news-consuming public.
“This is yet another example of the profound systemic issues with roots in many years of governmental choices,” noted Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the Penn.
The speculation about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a more important point.
“It is often framed as a business story with powerful individuals as the main characters, but there is very little discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard added.
The Additional Factor: The Former President
This situation is made more complex by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his main “fake news” foe.
Remember the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at his rallies, his administration's retaliatory withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in official meetings.
Trump now says that the network requires new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will shield him from negative coverage and examination. That is a factor in why he appears to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.
He has grounds to like that bidder more. For one thing, it is run by David Ellison, son of the pro-Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
Paramount, parent of CBS News, also recently placed the conservative Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that venerable news network.
A Possibility of Continued Instability
Notably, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a standalone company. Such a move could be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s far from a secure position. That structure could position CNN for yet another acquisition. It never ends.
In the view of Timothy Wu, a lot of this is against the law, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance recently argued that anti-trust laws should disallow both deals.
“Both acquisition attempts would be harmful to the country, and both should be challenged by the government,” Wu recently wrote.
The Core Problem and a Potential Solution
Whatever happens regarding CNN, the bigger problem remains.
“What we have now is a very system hostile to democracy, but we must resist the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard said. Government actions – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this hyper-commercialized monster, and new policy decisions can tackle it.
Will that happen in an era where the top communications regulator refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Change is very unlikely now, but that is not to say it will never happen.
Initiatives that strengthen independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, subsidize public media, and prevent the consolidation of media power in too few hands are achievable – they are vital for a robust democracy.
In the world of media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations such as CNN must not be pieces in the newest acquisition battle.
