Late Thursday, amid swirling speculation concerning 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.
While it is by no means a perfect news source, her message rang true for numerous observers. It stands as one of the broadcasters where one can locate fact-based and generally trustworthy reporting – especially during crises like the one unfolding near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable Position Amid a Corporate Battle
Yet the news network, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a precarious situation as two massive media corporations battle over ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the fate of CNN has become part of a major game of mergers and acquisitions, instead of as a question of what serves the news-consuming public.
“This represents another instance of the deep structural problems with roots in many years of governmental choices,” noted Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the Pennsylvania University.
The conjecture about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – misses a broader point.
“The narrative is crafted as a financial tale with powerful individuals as the central actors, but there is very little discussion of the common good,” Pickard said.
The Complicating Layer: Political Influence
The CNN scenario is further muddied by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his main “fake news” antagonist.
Recall the chants of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his administration's retaliatory withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in press briefings.
Trump now says that CNN needs new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will shield him from journalistic oversight. That is a factor in why he seems to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.
Trump has reason to favor that bidder more. For one thing, it is run by David Ellison, son of the Trump-friendly 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 editor-in-chief of that venerable news network.
A Possibility of More Uncertainty
Notably, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a standalone company. Such a move could be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s far from a guarantee of stability. That setup could position CNN for yet another acquisition. There is no finish line.
According to Timothy Wu, a lot of this is against the law, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance recently argued that anti-trust laws should prohibit both deals.
“Either merger would be detrimental to the country, and both should be contested by the government,” Wu stated.
The Fundamental Issue and a Potential Solution
Regardless of the resolution in this situation, the bigger problem endures.
“What we have now is a highly anti-democratic system, but we ought not succumb to the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard emphasized. Government actions – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this hyper-commercialized monster, and new policy decisions can fix it.
Will that happen in an era where the head of the FCC will not confirm that the agency is independent? Reform is a distant prospect now, but that is not to say it will never happen.
Policies that support independent news organizations, aid local journalism, subsidize public media, and prevent the concentration of media power in too few hands are within reach – they are necessary for a healthy democracy.
When it comes to media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations such as CNN shouldn’t be pieces in the most recent merger game.