On Thursday evening, while unconfirmed reports spread regarding the Brown University gunman, the network's Kaitlan Collins took to social media, pointing out the conflicting information and guiding the public to her channel's 9pm newscast.
While CNN is certainly not a impeccable news source, her statement rang true to many. It is one of the broadcasters where one can locate fact-based and mostly reliable reporting – especially during fast-moving events such as the one taking place near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious State During a Business Struggle
Yet the news network, now middle-aged, finds itself in a vulnerable state as two giant media empires vie for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
Whatever the outcome, the fate of CNN has turned into a high-stakes game of mergers and acquisitions, not as a question of what helps the news-consuming public.
“This is yet another example of the deep structural problems with roots in decades of governmental choices,” stated Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the Pennsylvania University.
The conjecture about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a larger point.
“It is often framed as a financial tale with key players as the main characters, but there is scant discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard said.
The Complicating Element: Donald Trump
This situation is further muddied by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his main “fake news” foe.
Remember the chants of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his team's disciplinary suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in press briefings.
Trump now asserts that the network requires new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will shield him from journalistic oversight. That is part of why he seems to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.
He has grounds to prefer that bidder more. For one thing, it is controlled by David Ellison, son of the Trump-friendly Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
The company, parent of CBS News, also recently appointed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that venerable news network.
A Possibility of Further Turmoil
It is important to note, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a separate entity. This might be a relief to many at the network, but it’s far from a safe harbor. That setup could pave the way for CNN for yet another acquisition. It never ends.
In the view of Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is against the law, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance recently argued that anti-trust laws should disallow both deals.
“Either merger would be harmful to the country, and both should be opposed by regulators,” Wu recently wrote.
The Core Issue and a Path Forward
No matter the outcome with this particular battle, the larger issue endures.
“The present media landscape is a highly structure that undermines democracy, but we shouldn’t give in to the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard said. Policy decisions – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this overly commercial monster, and revised policy decisions can address it.
Can reform occur in an era where the top communications regulator refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Reform is a distant prospect now, but that is not to say it will never happen.
Initiatives that bolster independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, finance public media, and outlaw the accumulation of media power in too few hands are within reach – they are essential for a functioning democracy.
In the world of media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations including CNN must not be pawns in the newest acquisition battle.
