This past Thursday night, as rumors swirled about the Brown University gunman, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins used social media, pointing out the conflicting information and directing people to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Even though it is by no means a flawless news source, her message rang true to many. It is one of the outlets where there exists fact-based and mostly trustworthy reporting – notably during fast-moving events like the one developing near a New Hampshire storage facility.
An Uncertain State Amid a Business Battle
Yet CNN, now middle-aged, finds itself in a vulnerable position as two massive media corporations vie for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
Whatever the outcome, the fate of CNN has turned into a high-stakes game of business acquisition, not as a question of what helps the information-seeking public.
“Here is one more case of the deep structural problems with roots in many years of regulatory actions,” noted Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the Pennsylvania University.
The speculation about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a broader point.
“It gets presented as a corporate drama with key players as the protagonists, but there is hardly any discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard explained.
The Complicating Factor: Political Influence
The network's predicament is further muddied by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his primary “fake news” antagonist.
Remember the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at his rallies, his administration’s punitive withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in White House briefings.
Trump now says that CNN needs new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will protect him from criticism and scrutiny. That is one reason why he appears to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.
Trump has reason to like that company more. For one thing, it is led by David Ellison, son of the ally of Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
Paramount, parent of CBS News, also recently installed the conservative Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that historic news network.
A Future of Continued Turmoil
Significantly, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a standalone company. That would be a relief to many at the network, but it’s hardly a guarantee of stability. That arrangement could pave the way for CNN for a future sale. It never ends.
If you ask Timothy Wu, a lot of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance stated that anti-trust laws should block both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be harmful to the country, and both should be opposed by anti-trust authorities,” Wu argued.
The Core Issue and a Way Ahead
No matter the outcome regarding CNN, the bigger problem remains.
“Our current system is a highly system hostile to democracy, but we must resist learned helplessness,” Pickard emphasized. Policy decisions – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this hyper-commercialized monster, and different policy decisions can address it.
Can reform occur in an era where the top communications regulator refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Overhaul is a distant prospect now, but that doesn’t mean it will not happen in the future.
Initiatives that support independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, fund public media, and prohibit the concentration of media power in too few hands are achievable – they are essential for a healthy democracy.
Regarding media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations such as CNN cannot be tools in the most recent corporate chess match.
