Late Thursday, amid swirling speculation regarding 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.
While it is by no means a flawless news source, her statement rang true to many. It remains one of the organizations where one can locate grounded and mostly trustworthy reporting – particularly during fast-moving events like the one taking place near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable Situation Amid a Corporate Battle
However the news network, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a uncertain situation as two massive media corporations battle over ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Whatever the outcome, the destiny of CNN has become part of a high-risk game of mergers and acquisitions, 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 policy decisions,” said Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the Penn.
The debate about who will own Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a larger point.
“The narrative is crafted as a financial tale with influential figures as the central actors, but there is very little discussion of the common good,” Pickard explained.
A Further Factor: Donald Trump
The network's predicament is further muddied by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his main “fake news” adversary.
Recall the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his administration’s punitive suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in press briefings.
Trump now says that the network requires new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will protect him from criticism and scrutiny. That is part of why he appears to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
He has grounds to favor that suitor 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.
Paramount, parent of CBS News, also recently installed the conservative Bari Weiss, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that venerable news network.
A Future of Further Instability
Notably, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a separate entity. This might be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s not exactly a secure position. That setup could position CNN for another sale. It never ends.
If you ask Timothy Wu, much of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance recently argued that anti-trust laws should disallow both deals.
“Either merger would be bad for the country, and both should be opposed by anti-trust authorities,” Wu argued.
The Bigger Challenge and a Path Forward
Regardless of the resolution with this particular battle, the bigger problem remains.
“What we have now is a very structure that undermines democracy, but we shouldn’t give in to the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard emphasized. Government actions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this overly commercial monster, and different policy decisions can tackle it.
Can reform occur in an era where the head of the FCC refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Overhaul is very unlikely now, but that should not imply it will be impossible forever.
Measures that bolster independent news organizations, aid local journalism, subsidize public media, and prohibit the concentration of media power in too few hands are within reach – they are essential for a functioning democracy.
In the world of media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations like CNN cannot be pawns in the most recent acquisition battle.
