On Thursday evening, amid swirling speculation regarding an incident at Brown University, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, pointing out the conflicting information and guiding the public to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Although the network is hardly a flawless news source, her statement seemed accurate for a lot of people. It is one of the broadcasters where there exists reality-based and generally trustworthy reporting – notably during crises such as the one unfolding in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.
An Uncertain Position Amid a Business Battle
However the news network, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a uncertain position as two giant media empires vie for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the future of CNN has become part of a high-risk game of mergers and acquisitions, instead of as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.
“This represents another instance of the fundamental flaws with roots in many years of regulatory actions,” stated Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the Pennsylvania University.
The speculation about who will own Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – misses a more important point.
“The narrative is crafted as a financial tale with influential figures as the central actors, but there is very little discussion of the common good,” Pickard said.
The Additional Element: The Former President
This situation is complicated by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his primary “fake news” adversary.
Recall the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his team's disciplinary withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in White House briefings.
Trump now says that the network requires new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will shield him from criticism and scrutiny. That is a factor in why he seems to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
There is a basis to like that suitor 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 appointed the conservative Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that venerable news network.
An Outcome of Further Turmoil
Notably, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a separate entity. Such a move could be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s hardly a guarantee of stability. That structure could pave the way for CNN for another sale. There is no finish line.
In the view of Timothy Wu, much of this is against the law, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance recently argued that anti-trust laws should prohibit both deals.
“Both acquisition attempts would be harmful to the country, and both should be contested by anti-trust authorities,” Wu recently wrote.
The Core Challenge and a Path Forward
Whatever happens regarding CNN, the larger issue persists.
“What we have now is a highly system hostile to democracy, but we must resist a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard noted. Government actions – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this overly commercial monster, and different policy decisions can address it.
Can reform occur in an era where the head of the FCC won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Change is a distant prospect now, but that should not imply it will not happen in the future.
Initiatives that support independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, subsidize public media, and prohibit the concentration of media power in too few hands are within reach – they are necessary for a healthy democracy.
Regarding media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations such as CNN shouldn’t be tools in the latest acquisition battle.
