This past Thursday night, while unconfirmed reports spread concerning an incident at Brown University, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins used social media, pointing out the conflicting information and guiding the public to her network’s 9pm newscast.
Even though it is by no means a perfect news source, her statement rang true to many. It stands as one of the broadcasters where one can locate fact-based and mostly trustworthy reporting – especially during fast-moving events such as the one developing in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable Situation Amid a High-Stakes Struggle
However the news network, now 45 years old, finds itself in a vulnerable state as two huge media conglomerates battle over ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Regardless of who wins, the future of CNN has been drawn into a high-stakes game of corporate ownership, rather than as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.
“Here is one more case of the deep structural problems with roots in many years of governmental choices,” said 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 – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a broader point.
“The narrative is crafted as a corporate drama with influential figures as the protagonists, but there is hardly any discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard said.
The Complicating Factor: Political Influence
The CNN scenario is further muddied by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his chief “fake news” foe.
Think back to the cries of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his administration's retaliatory revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in White House briefings.
Trump now claims that CNN needs new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will shield him from negative coverage and examination. That is one reason why he appears to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.
There is a basis to prefer that company more. For one thing, it is led by David Ellison, son of the ally of Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
The company, parent of CBS News, also recently placed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that historic news network.
An Outcome of Further Uncertainty
Notably, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a separate entity. This might be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s not exactly a guarantee of stability. That setup could position CNN for a future sale. It never ends.
In the view of Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is against the law, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance recently argued that competition laws should block both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be bad for the country, and both should be opposed by regulators,” Wu argued.
The Fundamental Issue and a Way Ahead
Regardless of the resolution with this particular battle, the larger issue remains.
“What we have now is a very system hostile to democracy, but we ought not succumb to the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard emphasized. Government actions – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this profit-obsessed monster, and new policy decisions can tackle it.
Can reform occur in an era where the top communications regulator refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Change is highly improbable 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 concentration of media power in too few hands are within reach – they are vital for a healthy democracy.
In the world of media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations including CNN cannot be tools in the latest merger game.
