Late Thursday, while unconfirmed reports spread concerning an incident at Brown University, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, noting the confusion and pointing viewers to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Although the network is hardly a flawless news source, her message seemed accurate to many. It stands as one of the organizations where there exists grounded and largely trustworthy reporting – especially during crises such as the one developing in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious Situation During a Business Tug-of-War
However the news network, now 45 years old, finds itself in a uncertain position as two massive media corporations compete for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the future of CNN has been drawn into a major game of business acquisition, rather than as a question of what benefits the news-consuming public.
“This is yet another example of the profound systemic issues with origins in many years of regulatory actions,” stated Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the Penn.
The speculation about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a more important point.
“The narrative is crafted as a financial tale with powerful individuals as the central actors, but there is very little discussion of the common good,” Pickard said.
The Complicating Element: Political Influence
The CNN scenario is further muddied by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his main “fake news” adversary.
Think back to the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his team's disciplinary withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in official meetings.
Trump now claims that CNN needs new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will protect him from criticism and scrutiny. That is part of why he appears to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.
He has grounds to prefer 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, owner of CBS News, also recently installed the conservative Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that historic news network.
A Possibility of Further Instability
It is important to note, if Netflix wins, 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 far from a safe harbor. That structure could position CNN for another sale. The cycle continues.
According to Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance recently argued that competition laws should disallow both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be bad for the country, and both should be challenged by the government,” Wu recently wrote.
The Core Problem and a Potential Solution
Regardless of the resolution in this situation, the underlying crisis remains.
“Our current system is a highly structure that undermines democracy, but we must resist the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard noted. Regulatory choices – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this hyper-commercialized monster, and new policy decisions can fix it.
Will that happen in an era where the top communications regulator will not confirm that the agency is independent? Change is very unlikely now, but that should not imply it will not happen in the future.
Measures that strengthen independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, fund public media, and outlaw the consolidation of media power in very few hands are not only possible – they are necessary for a functioning democracy.
When it comes to media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations like CNN cannot be tools in the newest merger game.
