This past Thursday night, as rumors swirled about an incident at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, highlighting the uncertainty and guiding the public to her network’s 9pm newscast.
Even though it is by no means a flawless news source, her statement resonated for numerous observers. It remains one of the organizations where you can find reality-based and generally dependable reporting – notably during fast-moving events such as the one unfolding near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable Position During a High-Stakes Tug-of-War
But CNN, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a uncertain state as two massive media conglomerates compete for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the future of CNN has turned into a high-risk game of business acquisition, instead of as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.
“This represents another instance of the deep structural problems with origins in decades of regulatory actions,” stated Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the University of Pennsylvania.
The conjecture about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a broader point.
“The narrative is crafted as a financial tale with key players as the protagonists, but there is hardly any discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard explained.
A Further Factor: The Former President
The CNN scenario is made more complex by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his main “fake news” adversary.
Remember the cries of “CNN sucks!” at his rallies, his administration’s punitive revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in White House briefings.
Trump now claims that CNN needs new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will insulate him from journalistic oversight. That is one reason why he appears to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.
Trump has reason to favor that bidder more. For one thing, it is controlled by David Ellison, son of the pro-Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
The company, owner of CBS News, also recently appointed the conservative Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that storied news network.
A Future of Continued Instability
Notably, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a standalone company. Such a move could be a relief to many at the network, but it’s far from a secure position. That setup could set up CNN for a future sale. The cycle continues.
In the view of Timothy Wu, a lot of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that anti-trust laws should block both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be detrimental to the country, and both should be challenged by anti-trust authorities,” Wu recently wrote.
The Bigger Challenge and a Path Forward
Whatever happens in this situation, the larger issue endures.
“What we have now is a highly anti-democratic system, but we must resist a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard emphasized. Regulatory choices – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this overly commercial monster, and revised policy decisions can fix it.
Is this likely in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Reform is highly improbable now, but that is not to say it will be impossible forever.
Policies that support independent news organizations, aid local journalism, fund public media, and prevent the accumulation of media power in very few hands are not only possible – they are vital for a robust democracy.
When it comes to media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations like CNN must not be pieces in the most recent acquisition battle.
