Late Thursday, amid swirling speculation concerning a shooting at Brown University, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins used social media, pointing out the conflicting information and pointing viewers to her network’s 9pm newscast.
Although CNN is certainly not a perfect news source, her words rang true for numerous observers. It remains one of the outlets where you can find fact-based and largely dependable reporting – particularly during fast-moving events such as the one developing in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable Position Amid a Business Struggle
But the news network, now middle-aged, finds itself in a uncertain situation as two massive media empires vie for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the destiny of CNN has turned into a high-risk game of mergers and acquisitions, instead of as a question of what helps the information-seeking public.
“This is yet another example of the profound systemic issues with roots in many years of regulatory actions,” stated Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the Pennsylvania University.
The debate about who will own Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – misses a larger point.
“It gets presented as a business story with powerful individuals as the protagonists, but there is scant discussion of the common good,” Pickard explained.
The Complicating Layer: Donald Trump
The CNN scenario is further muddied by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his chief “fake news” antagonist.
Think back to the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his administration’s punitive suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in official meetings.
Trump now says that the network requires new ownership. Many see this as a desire for 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 unsolicited offer.
Trump has reason to prefer that company more. For one thing, it is run by David Ellison, son of the ally of Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
The company, owner of CBS News, also recently placed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that storied news network.
A Future of More Uncertainty
Notably, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a separate entity. Such a move could be a relief to many at the network, but it’s not exactly 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 lot 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.
“Each proposed deal would be bad for the country, and both should be challenged by the government,” Wu recently wrote.
The Bigger Challenge and a Potential Solution
Regardless of the resolution regarding CNN, the bigger problem persists.
“What we have now is a highly anti-democratic system, but we must resist a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard said. Policy decisions – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this hyper-commercialized monster, and different policy decisions can fix it.
Is this likely in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Change is a distant prospect now, but that doesn’t mean it will not happen in the future.
Initiatives that bolster independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, finance public media, and outlaw the accumulation of media power in too few hands are not only possible – they are vital for a functioning democracy.
When it comes to media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations such as CNN cannot be pawns in the most recent acquisition battle.
