This past Thursday night, amid swirling speculation about an incident at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins took to social media, highlighting the uncertainty and pointing viewers to her network’s 9pm newscast.
While the network is hardly a flawless news source, her statement rang true for numerous observers. It remains one of the outlets where one can locate grounded and mostly trustworthy reporting – particularly during crises such as the one developing in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.
An Uncertain State Amid a Corporate Battle
But the news network, now middle-aged, finds itself in a vulnerable situation as two huge media corporations vie for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the fate of CNN has been drawn into a major game of business acquisition, instead of as a question of what serves the news-consuming public.
“This represents another instance of the profound systemic issues with roots in many years of governmental choices,” noted Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the University of Pennsylvania.
The speculation about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – misses a broader point.
“The narrative is crafted as a financial tale with key players as the protagonists, but there is scant discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard added.
The Additional Layer: Political Influence
This situation is complicated by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his chief “fake news” adversary.
Remember the cries of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his team's disciplinary suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in official meetings.
Trump now asserts that the network requires new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will insulate him from criticism and scrutiny. That is a factor in why he appears to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.
He has grounds to prefer that company more. For one thing, it is controlled 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, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top 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. This might be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s not exactly a secure position. That arrangement could set up CNN for a future sale. It never ends.
According to 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 prohibit both deals.
“Both acquisition attempts would be harmful to the country, and both should be challenged by anti-trust authorities,” Wu stated.
The Fundamental Issue and a Way Ahead
No matter the outcome regarding CNN, the bigger problem persists.
“Our current system is a highly anti-democratic system, but we shouldn’t give in to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard said. Government actions – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this overly commercial monster, and different policy decisions can tackle it.
Will that happen in an era where the head of the FCC won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Reform is a distant prospect now, but that is not to say it will be impossible forever.
Policies that bolster independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, fund public media, and outlaw the consolidation of media power in a handful of hands are not only possible – they are necessary for a functioning democracy.
When it comes to media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations such as CNN must not be tools in the most recent acquisition battle.
