On Thursday evening, amid swirling speculation regarding an incident at Brown University, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins took to social media, highlighting the uncertainty and directing people to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Although it is by no means a flawless news source, her words resonated for a lot of people. It stands as one of the broadcasters where there exists reality-based and generally trustworthy reporting – particularly during breaking news situations like the one developing near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious State Amid a Business Tug-of-War
However CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a vulnerable position as two huge media empires compete for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Whatever the outcome, the fate of CNN has been drawn into a major game of mergers and acquisitions, rather than as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.
“This represents another instance of the deep structural problems with roots in decades of regulatory actions,” noted Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the Penn.
The conjecture about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – misses a larger point.
“It is often framed as a business story with influential figures as the protagonists, but there is very little discussion of the public interest,” Pickard said.
The Additional Element: Donald Trump
The network's predicament is further muddied by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his main “fake news” foe.
Think back to the chants of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his administration's retaliatory revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in White House briefings.
Trump now asserts that the network requires new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will insulate him from journalistic oversight. That is a factor in why he appears to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
Trump has reason to prefer that bidder more. For one thing, it is run 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 placed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that historic news network.
A Future of Further Uncertainty
It is important to note, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a standalone company. That would be a relief to many at the network, but it’s far from a guarantee of stability. That structure could set up CNN for a future sale. The cycle continues.
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 prohibit both deals.
“Either merger would be harmful to the country, and both should be opposed by regulators,” Wu argued.
The Core Issue and a Way Ahead
Whatever happens with this particular battle, the larger issue remains.
“Our current system is a very anti-democratic system, but we shouldn’t give in to learned helplessness,” Pickard said. Government actions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this hyper-commercialized monster, and new policy decisions can address it.
Can reform occur in an era where the head of the FCC will not confirm that the agency is independent? Overhaul is a distant prospect now, but that is not to say it will be impossible forever.
Initiatives that strengthen independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, subsidize public media, and prohibit the concentration of media power in too few hands are not only possible – they are essential for a healthy democracy.
In the world of media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations like CNN cannot be pieces in the latest acquisition battle.
