On Thursday evening, while unconfirmed reports spread regarding a shooting at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins used social media, pointing out the conflicting information and guiding the public to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Even though it is by no means a perfect news source, her statement seemed accurate for a lot of people. It remains one of the outlets where one can locate reality-based and mostly reliable reporting – especially during breaking news situations such as the one developing in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable State Amid a Corporate Tug-of-War
Yet CNN, now middle-aged, finds itself in a vulnerable position as two massive media empires vie for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
Whatever the outcome, the destiny of CNN has been drawn into a major game of corporate ownership, instead of as a question of what serves the news-consuming public.
“This represents another instance of the fundamental flaws with origins in many years of policy decisions,” stated Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the Penn.
The conjecture about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a more important point.
“It gets presented as a financial tale with key players as the central actors, but there is scant discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard added.
A Further Layer: Political Influence
This situation is further muddied by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his chief “fake news” adversary.
Recall the chants of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his team's disciplinary suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in press briefings.
Trump now asserts that the network requires new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will shield him from journalistic oversight. That is part of why he appears to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
Trump has reason to prefer that bidder 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.
The company, parent of CBS News, also recently appointed the conservative Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that historic news network.
A Future of More Turmoil
Significantly, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a separate entity. This might be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s hardly a safe harbor. That setup could set up CNN for another sale. It never ends.
According to 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 disallow both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be bad for the country, and both should be contested by anti-trust authorities,” Wu recently wrote.
The Fundamental Challenge and a Way Ahead
No matter the outcome regarding CNN, the underlying crisis persists.
“The present media landscape is a highly anti-democratic system, but we ought not succumb to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard noted. Regulatory choices – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this overly commercial monster, and revised policy decisions can address it.
Is this likely in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair will not confirm that the agency is independent? Reform is very unlikely now, but that should not imply it will never happen.
Policies that bolster independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, fund public media, and outlaw the concentration of media power in a handful of hands are achievable – they are necessary for a robust democracy.
Regarding media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations like CNN must not be tools in the newest acquisition battle.
