Late Thursday, while unconfirmed reports spread about the Brown University gunman, the network's Kaitlan Collins took to 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 resonated to many. It stands as one of the outlets where you can find grounded and generally dependable reporting – notably during breaking news situations such as the one developing in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious State Amid a Corporate Struggle
But CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a vulnerable state as two massive media corporations vie for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the fate of CNN has turned into a high-risk game of mergers and acquisitions, rather than as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.
“This represents another instance of the deep structural problems with roots in many years of regulatory actions,” noted Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the Pennsylvania University.
The conjecture about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a broader point.
“It is often framed as a financial tale with powerful individuals as the central actors, but there is hardly any discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard said.
A Further Layer: Donald Trump
This situation is further muddied by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his main “fake news” antagonist.
Think back to the chants of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his team's disciplinary withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in press briefings.
Trump now claims that CNN needs new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will insulate him from negative coverage and examination. That is one reason why he seems to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.
Trump has reason to like that company more. For one thing, it is run 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 placed the conservative Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that venerable news network.
A Future of Further Instability
It is important to note, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a separate entity. Such a move could be a welcome development 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. The cycle continues.
According to Timothy Wu, a lot of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance recently argued that competition laws should block both deals.
“Either merger would be harmful to the country, and both should be opposed by regulators,” Wu argued.
The Core Issue and a Path Forward
Whatever happens with this particular battle, the underlying crisis endures.
“The present media landscape is a profoundly system hostile to democracy, but we shouldn’t give in to the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard said. Regulatory choices – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this profit-obsessed monster, and new policy decisions can fix it.
Will that happen in an era where the top communications regulator will not confirm that the agency is independent? Overhaul is highly improbable now, but that is not to say it will be impossible forever.
Initiatives that strengthen independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, subsidize public media, and outlaw the concentration of media power in a handful of hands are achievable – they are essential for a robust democracy.
In the world of media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations including CNN must not be pieces in the newest merger game.
