Late Thursday, as rumors swirled concerning the Brown University gunman, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins took to social media, pointing out the conflicting information and pointing viewers to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Even though CNN is certainly not a impeccable news source, her words rang true for numerous observers. It stands as one of the organizations where one can locate fact-based and mostly trustworthy reporting – notably during breaking news situations such as the one taking place near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable Position Amid a Corporate Tug-of-War
Yet the news network, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a precarious state as two massive media conglomerates battle over ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the future of CNN has turned into a major game of business acquisition, instead of as a question of what helps the news-consuming public.
“This represents another instance of the deep structural problems with roots in many years of governmental choices,” noted Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the Penn.
The debate about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a more important point.
“It is often framed as a financial tale with influential figures as the central actors, but there is very little discussion of the common good,” Pickard said.
A Further Element: Donald Trump
The CNN scenario is complicated by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his primary “fake news” antagonist.
Recall the chants of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his administration’s punitive suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in press briefings.
Trump now claims that CNN needs new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will protect him from negative coverage and examination. That is part of why he appears to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
Trump has reason to favor that bidder more. For one thing, it is run by David Ellison, son of the Trump-friendly Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
Paramount, parent of CBS News, also recently placed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that venerable news network.
A Future of Further Turmoil
Notably, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a standalone company. That would be a relief to many at the network, but it’s not exactly a secure position. That structure could position CNN for another sale. There is no finish line.
If you ask Timothy Wu, a lot of this is against the law, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that competition laws should block both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be detrimental to the country, and both should be opposed by anti-trust authorities,” Wu recently wrote.
The Core Problem and a Path Forward
Whatever happens with this particular battle, the bigger problem remains.
“The present media landscape is a profoundly anti-democratic system, but we shouldn’t give in to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard said. Regulatory choices – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this overly commercial monster, and new policy decisions can fix it.
Is this likely in an era where the head of the FCC won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Reform is highly improbable now, but that doesn’t mean it will never happen.
Measures that bolster independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, fund public media, and prohibit the accumulation of media power in very few hands are not only possible – they are vital for a healthy democracy.
When it comes to media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations such as CNN shouldn’t be pieces in the latest acquisition battle.
