Late Thursday, while unconfirmed reports spread concerning a shooting at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, noting the confusion and directing people to her network’s 9pm newscast.
Even though it is by no means a impeccable news source, her words resonated for a lot of people. It stands as one of the organizations where one can locate grounded and generally trustworthy reporting – notably during fast-moving events such as the one taking place near a New Hampshire storage facility.
An Uncertain Position Amid a Business Battle
But the news network, now 45 years old, finds itself in a precarious position as two huge media corporations compete for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Regardless of who wins, the destiny of CNN has been drawn into a major game of business acquisition, rather than as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.
“This represents another instance of the profound systemic issues with origins in decades of policy decisions,” said Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the University of Pennsylvania.
The conjecture about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a larger point.
“The narrative is crafted as a business story with key players as the central actors, but there is scant discussion of the public interest,” 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 consistently labeled as perhaps his primary “fake news” antagonist.
Think back to the chants of “CNN sucks!” at his rallies, his team's disciplinary withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in press briefings.
Trump now asserts that the network requires new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will protect him from negative coverage and examination. That is one reason why he appears to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
He has grounds to prefer that suitor 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, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that storied news network.
An Outcome of More Instability
Notably, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a separate entity. Such a move could be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s hardly a secure position. That structure could pave the way for CNN for yet another acquisition. The cycle continues.
In the view of Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is against the law, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance recently argued that competition laws should block both deals.
“Both acquisition attempts would be detrimental to the country, and both should be challenged by anti-trust authorities,” Wu recently wrote.
The Bigger Challenge and a Potential Solution
Whatever happens regarding CNN, the bigger problem endures.
“What we have now is a profoundly system hostile to democracy, but we shouldn’t give in to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard emphasized. Government actions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this overly commercial monster, and different policy decisions can tackle it.
Is this likely in an era where the head of the FCC refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Reform is highly improbable now, but that should not imply it will not happen in the future.
Policies that support independent news organizations, aid local journalism, finance public media, and prohibit the accumulation of media power in very few hands are within reach – they are vital for a functioning democracy.
Regarding media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations such as CNN shouldn’t be pieces in the latest merger game.
