Late Thursday, as rumors swirled concerning a shooting at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins took to social media, pointing out the conflicting information and directing people to her channel's 9pm newscast.
While the network is hardly a perfect news source, her statement seemed accurate for numerous observers. It remains one of the organizations where there exists grounded and mostly reliable reporting – notably during fast-moving events like the one unfolding near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable Situation Amid a Business Battle
However CNN, now middle-aged, finds itself in a vulnerable situation as two massive media conglomerates compete for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Regardless of who wins, the destiny of CNN has become part of a high-stakes game of mergers and acquisitions, rather than as a question of what serves the news-consuming public.
“Here is one more case of the fundamental flaws with roots in decades of governmental choices,” stated Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the University of Pennsylvania.
The speculation about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a broader point.
“It gets presented as a financial tale with key players as the central actors, but there is scant discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard added.
The Additional Factor: The Former President
The CNN scenario is complicated by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his main “fake news” adversary.
Recall the chants of “CNN sucks!” at his rallies, his administration's retaliatory revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in official meetings.
Trump now claims that CNN needs new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will insulate him from criticism and scrutiny. That is one reason why he seems to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.
He has grounds to like that bidder 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, owner of CBS News, also recently appointed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that storied news network.
A Future of Further Turmoil
It is important to note, if Netflix is successful, 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 structure could position CNN for yet another acquisition. It never ends.
If you ask Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is against the law, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that anti-trust laws should block both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be detrimental to the country, and both should be opposed by regulators,” Wu stated.
The Fundamental Problem and a Path Forward
No matter the outcome in this situation, the underlying crisis remains.
“The present media landscape is a highly anti-democratic system, but we shouldn’t give in to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard emphasized. Government actions – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this hyper-commercialized monster, and revised policy decisions can fix it.
Can reform occur in an era where the head of the FCC will not confirm that the agency is independent? Change is a distant prospect now, but that should not imply it will not happen in the future.
Initiatives that support independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, finance public media, and outlaw the accumulation of media power in a handful of hands are within reach – they are necessary for a robust democracy.
In the world of media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations like CNN shouldn’t be pawns in the newest merger game.
