Late Thursday, as rumors swirled concerning an incident at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins took to social media, noting the confusion and guiding the public to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Even though it is by no means a impeccable news source, her words rang true for numerous observers. It remains one of the outlets where you can find fact-based and generally trustworthy reporting – especially during breaking news situations such as the one unfolding close to a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious Situation Amid a Corporate Battle
But CNN, now middle-aged, finds itself in a uncertain state as two huge media empires battle over ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Whatever the outcome, the destiny of CNN has turned into a high-risk game of corporate ownership, rather than as a question of what helps the information-seeking public.
“Here is one more case of the deep structural problems with roots in decades of regulatory actions,” noted Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the Penn.
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 powerful individuals as the central actors, but there is scant discussion of the common good,” Pickard explained.
A Further Element: The Former President
The network's predicament is further muddied by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his primary “fake news” antagonist.
Remember the cries of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his administration’s punitive withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in press briefings.
Trump now asserts that CNN needs new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will protect him from journalistic oversight. That is a factor in why he seems to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.
He has grounds to like that suitor 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, owner of CBS News, also recently installed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that historic news network.
An Outcome of Further Turmoil
Significantly, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a separate entity. That would be a relief to many at the network, but it’s far from a safe harbor. That arrangement could set up CNN for a future sale. There is no finish line.
According to Timothy Wu, much 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 bad for the country, and both should be challenged by the government,” Wu argued.
The Fundamental Problem and a Potential Solution
Whatever happens in this situation, the bigger problem endures.
“What we have now is a highly structure that undermines democracy, but we ought not succumb to learned helplessness,” Pickard noted. Regulatory choices – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this hyper-commercialized monster, and revised policy decisions can fix it.
Will that happen in an era where the head of the FCC refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Overhaul is a distant prospect now, but that doesn’t mean it will be impossible forever.
Measures that bolster independent news organizations, aid local journalism, subsidize public media, and prevent the accumulation of media power in too few hands are within reach – they are essential for a healthy democracy.
When it comes to media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations including CNN must not be pieces in the most recent acquisition battle.
