On Thursday evening, amid swirling speculation regarding the Brown University gunman, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, noting the confusion and directing people to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Although CNN is certainly not a flawless news source, her statement seemed accurate to many. It remains one of the outlets where one can locate fact-based and mostly reliable reporting – notably during breaking news situations such as the one developing close to a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious State Amid a High-Stakes Battle
Yet CNN, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a uncertain state as two giant media empires battle over ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
Regardless of who wins, the destiny of CNN has become part of a major game of business acquisition, rather than as a question of what helps the news-consuming public.
“This is yet another example of the profound systemic issues with origins in many years of governmental choices,” said Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the University of Pennsylvania.
The conjecture about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – misses a larger point.
“The narrative is crafted as a corporate drama with powerful individuals as the central actors, but there is very little discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard explained.
The Additional Layer: Political Influence
This situation is complicated by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his main “fake news” adversary.
Think back to the cries of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his team's disciplinary withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes 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 negative coverage and examination. That is one reason why he appears to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.
He has grounds to like that company 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.
The company, parent of CBS News, also recently appointed the conservative Bari Weiss, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that storied news network.
An Outcome of Continued Uncertainty
It is important to note, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a independent unit. That would be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s far from a secure position. That arrangement could position CNN for yet another acquisition. It never ends.
According to Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is against the law, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance recently argued that anti-trust laws should prohibit both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be harmful to the country, and both should be opposed by the government,” Wu stated.
The Bigger Challenge and a Way Ahead
Regardless of the resolution in this situation, the larger issue persists.
“Our current system is a very anti-democratic system, but we shouldn’t give in to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard emphasized. Regulatory choices – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this hyper-commercialized monster, and revised policy decisions can fix it.
Can reform occur in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Change is very unlikely now, but that should not imply it will never happen.
Initiatives that support independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, subsidize public media, and outlaw the accumulation of media power in very few hands are within reach – they are vital for a robust democracy.
Regarding media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations such as CNN shouldn’t be tools in the latest corporate chess match.
