Late Thursday, while unconfirmed reports spread regarding the Brown University gunman, the network's Kaitlan Collins took to social media, noting the confusion and pointing viewers to her network’s 9pm newscast.
While the network is hardly a perfect news source, her words rang true to many. It stands as one of the broadcasters where there exists reality-based and largely dependable reporting – especially during crises like the one taking place in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.
An Uncertain Position During a Corporate Tug-of-War
Yet CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a vulnerable state as two massive media corporations vie for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
Regardless of who wins, the destiny of CNN has been drawn into a major game of corporate ownership, rather than as a question of what serves the news-consuming public.
“Here is one more case of the profound systemic issues with origins in decades of regulatory actions,” said Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the Penn.
The debate about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a broader point.
“It is often framed as a business story with powerful individuals as the main characters, but there is hardly any discussion of the public interest,” Pickard said.
The Additional Factor: The Former President
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 chants of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his administration's retaliatory withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in press briefings.
Trump now claims that CNN needs new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will shield him from journalistic oversight. That is a factor in why he seems to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.
Trump has reason to prefer that company more. For one thing, it is controlled by David Ellison, son of the pro-Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
The company, parent of CBS News, also recently appointed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that storied news network.
A Possibility of More Turmoil
It is important to note, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a separate entity. That would be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s hardly a guarantee of stability. That arrangement could position CNN for a future sale. The cycle continues.
In the view of Timothy Wu, much of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that competition laws should prohibit both deals.
“Both acquisition attempts would be detrimental to the country, and both should be challenged by the government,” Wu stated.
The Fundamental Challenge and a Way Ahead
Whatever happens in this situation, the larger issue endures.
“What we have now is a very system hostile to democracy, but we must resist a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard said. Government actions – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this profit-obsessed monster, and new policy decisions can fix it.
Can reform occur in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Overhaul is highly improbable now, but that doesn’t mean it will not happen in the future.
Measures that bolster independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, subsidize public media, and prevent the concentration of media power in very few hands are achievable – they are essential for a robust democracy.
When it comes to media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations like CNN cannot be pawns in the newest acquisition battle.
