Late Thursday, amid swirling speculation regarding a shooting at Brown University, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins took to social media, pointing out the conflicting information and directing people to her network’s 9pm newscast.
Even though CNN is certainly not a impeccable news source, her statement resonated for numerous observers. It remains one of the organizations where you can find reality-based and generally dependable reporting – especially during breaking news situations like the one developing near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable Position During a Corporate Battle
However the news network, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a uncertain situation as two huge media corporations vie for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Regardless of who wins, the future of CNN has turned into a high-risk game of mergers and acquisitions, rather than as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.
“This is yet another example of the deep structural problems with roots in many years of policy decisions,” noted Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the University of Pennsylvania.
The speculation about who will own Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a more important point.
“The narrative is crafted as a financial tale with powerful individuals as the protagonists, but there is hardly any discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard said.
A Further Factor: The Former President
The network's predicament is further muddied by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his primary “fake news” antagonist.
Recall the chants of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his administration's retaliatory revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in press briefings.
Trump now says that CNN needs new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will insulate him from journalistic oversight. That is a factor in why he seems to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.
There is a basis to prefer that suitor more. For one thing, it is run by David Ellison, son of the pro-Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
Paramount, owner of CBS News, also recently appointed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that historic news network.
A Possibility of Further Uncertainty
Notably, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a separate entity. This might be a relief to many at the network, but it’s hardly a safe harbor. That structure could pave the way for CNN for a future sale. There is no finish line.
According to Timothy Wu, a lot of this is against the law, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance recently argued that competition laws should prohibit both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be detrimental to the country, and both should be opposed by the government,” Wu stated.
The Core Issue and a Path Forward
No matter the outcome regarding CNN, the bigger problem endures.
“What we have now is a very anti-democratic system, but we ought not succumb to learned helplessness,” Pickard said. Policy decisions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this profit-obsessed monster, and revised policy decisions can tackle it.
Is this likely in an era where the top communications regulator will not confirm that the agency is independent? Reform is very unlikely now, but that should not imply it will be impossible forever.
Measures that bolster independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, finance public media, and prohibit the concentration of media power in too few hands are not only possible – they are vital for a functioning democracy.
When it comes to media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations like CNN shouldn’t be pawns in the newest acquisition battle.
