On Thursday evening, while unconfirmed reports spread concerning an incident at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, noting the confusion and guiding the public to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Even though the network is hardly a perfect news source, her words rang true for a lot of people. It remains one of the outlets where there exists reality-based and largely reliable reporting – especially during fast-moving events like the one unfolding near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious Situation During a Business Tug-of-War
Yet CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a precarious position as two giant media empires compete for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
Whatever the outcome, the fate of CNN has been drawn into a high-stakes game of corporate ownership, rather than as a question of what benefits the news-consuming public.
“This represents another instance of the profound systemic issues with origins in decades of policy decisions,” noted Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the Penn.
The conjecture about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – misses a larger point.
“The narrative is crafted as a business story with influential figures as the protagonists, but there is very little discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard added.
A Further Layer: Political Influence
This situation is further muddied by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his chief “fake news” adversary.
Think back to the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his administration’s punitive withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in White House briefings.
Trump now says that the network requires new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will shield him from criticism and scrutiny. That is a factor in why he seems to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.
He has grounds to like 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.
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 historic news network.
A Future of Continued 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 relief to many at the network, but it’s hardly a secure position. That structure could position CNN for a future sale. The cycle continues.
According to Timothy Wu, much of this is illegal, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance stated that competition laws should disallow both deals.
“Either merger would be detrimental to the country, and both should be challenged by the government,” Wu recently wrote.
The Bigger Issue and a Way Ahead
Whatever happens regarding CNN, the bigger problem endures.
“Our current system is a highly anti-democratic system, but we shouldn’t give in to learned helplessness,” Pickard emphasized. Policy decisions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this overly commercial monster, and revised policy decisions can address it.
Can reform occur in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair will not confirm that the agency is independent? Change is a distant prospect now, but that is not to say it will be impossible forever.
Measures that bolster independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, fund public media, and prohibit the consolidation of media power in very few hands are achievable – they are vital for a functioning democracy.
When it comes to media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations including CNN shouldn’t be pieces in the newest corporate chess match.
