This past Thursday night, amid swirling speculation about a shooting at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins took to social media, pointing out the conflicting information and guiding the public to her network’s 9pm newscast.
While the network is hardly a perfect news source, her message resonated for numerous observers. It remains one of the organizations where one can locate fact-based and generally dependable reporting – notably during crises like the one developing near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable Position During a Corporate Tug-of-War
However CNN, now middle-aged, finds itself in a precarious situation as two huge media conglomerates vie for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the fate of CNN has become part of a high-stakes game of mergers and acquisitions, instead of as a question of what helps the news-consuming public.
“This represents another instance of the deep structural problems with roots in many years of governmental choices,” noted Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the University of Pennsylvania.
The debate about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a larger point.
“It gets presented as a financial tale with influential figures as the central actors, but there is very little discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard said.
The Complicating Layer: Political Influence
This situation is complicated by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his main “fake news” adversary.
Remember the cries of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his administration’s punitive revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in official meetings.
Trump now says that CNN needs new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will shield him from negative coverage and examination. That is part of why he appears to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
There is a basis to like that bidder more. For one thing, it is run by David Ellison, son of the Trump-friendly Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
Paramount, parent of CBS News, also recently appointed the conservative Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that storied news network.
A Possibility of More Uncertainty
It is important to note, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a independent unit. This might be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s far from a safe harbor. That arrangement could pave the way for CNN for another sale. There is no finish line.
In the view of Timothy Wu, a lot of this is against the law, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance stated that competition laws should prohibit both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be harmful to the country, and both should be challenged by the government,” Wu stated.
The Bigger Problem and a Way Ahead
Whatever happens with this particular battle, the larger issue persists.
“Our current system is a profoundly anti-democratic system, but we ought not succumb to the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard said. Government actions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this profit-obsessed monster, and revised policy decisions can tackle it.
Is this likely in an era where the head of the FCC won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Overhaul is very unlikely now, but that is not to say it will never happen.
Policies that bolster independent news organizations, aid local journalism, finance public media, and prevent the consolidation of media power in a handful of hands are not only possible – they are essential for a robust democracy.
In the world of media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations such as CNN cannot be pieces in the most recent corporate chess match.
