Late Thursday, as rumors swirled concerning the Brown University gunman, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, pointing out the conflicting information and directing people to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Although CNN is certainly not a impeccable news source, her words rang true for a lot of people. It is one of the organizations where one can locate grounded and mostly dependable reporting – particularly during fast-moving events such as the one developing in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.
An Uncertain State During a Business Battle
But CNN, now middle-aged, finds itself in a precarious state as two giant media corporations vie 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, not as a question of what serves the news-consuming public.
“This is yet another example of the deep structural problems with roots in many years of policy decisions,” said Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the Pennsylvania University.
The speculation about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a more important point.
“It gets presented as a business story with key players as the central actors, but there is hardly any discussion of the common good,” Pickard added.
A Further Layer: The Former President
This situation is complicated by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his chief “fake news” antagonist.
Think back to the cries of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his administration's retaliatory withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in press briefings.
Trump now says that CNN needs new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will protect him from negative coverage and examination. That is part of why he seems to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.
There is a basis to favor that bidder more. For one thing, it is led by David Ellison, son of the Trump-friendly Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
The company, parent of CBS News, also recently installed the conservative Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that storied news network.
A Possibility of Continued Instability
Notably, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a independent unit. Such a move could be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s hardly a secure position. That arrangement could pave the way for CNN for yet another acquisition. It never ends.
In the view of Timothy Wu, a lot of this is illegal, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance stated that competition laws should prohibit both deals.
“Either merger would be harmful to the country, and both should be opposed by regulators,” Wu stated.
The Core Problem and a Potential Solution
No matter the outcome regarding CNN, the underlying crisis remains.
“The present media landscape is a very system hostile to democracy, but we must resist learned helplessness,” Pickard noted. Policy decisions – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this overly commercial monster, and new policy decisions can tackle it.
Can reform occur in an era where the head of the FCC refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Overhaul is a distant prospect now, but that should not imply it will be impossible forever.
Measures that bolster independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, finance public media, and prohibit the concentration of media power in too few hands are achievable – they are essential for a functioning democracy.
When it comes to media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations such as CNN shouldn’t be pieces in the most recent merger game.
