This past Thursday night, amid swirling speculation regarding the Brown University gunman, the network's Kaitlan Collins used social media, highlighting the uncertainty and guiding the public to her network’s 9pm newscast.
While CNN is certainly not a impeccable news source, her words rang true for a lot of people. It remains one of the broadcasters where there exists fact-based and generally reliable reporting – particularly during fast-moving events such as the one unfolding close to a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable Situation During a Business Tug-of-War
However the news network, now middle-aged, finds itself in a precarious position as two massive media corporations vie for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Whatever the outcome, the fate of CNN has been drawn into a major game of mergers and acquisitions, not as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.
“Here is one more case of the fundamental flaws with origins in decades of policy decisions,” said Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the Pennsylvania University.
The debate about who will own Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a broader point.
“It is often framed as a business story with key players as the central actors, but there is scant discussion of the common good,” Pickard added.
The Complicating Factor: Political Influence
The network's predicament is made more complex by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his main “fake news” antagonist.
Think back to the cries of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his administration’s punitive revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in White House briefings.
Trump now claims that the network requires new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will shield him from negative coverage and examination. That is one reason why he appears to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
There is a basis to prefer that bidder more. For one thing, it is controlled by David Ellison, son of the ally of Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
The company, owner of CBS News, also recently installed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that storied news network.
An Outcome of Continued Turmoil
It is important to note, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a separate entity. This might be a relief to many at the network, but it’s hardly a guarantee of stability. That structure could set up CNN for another sale. The cycle continues.
According to Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance recently argued that competition laws should disallow both deals.
“Either merger would be detrimental to the country, and both should be opposed by regulators,” Wu stated.
The Fundamental Issue and a Potential Solution
Whatever happens in this situation, the underlying crisis endures.
“The present media landscape is a highly anti-democratic system, but we ought not succumb to learned helplessness,” Pickard said. Regulatory choices – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this profit-obsessed monster, and revised policy decisions can address it.
Will that happen in an era where the head of the FCC won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Reform is highly improbable now, but that is not to say it will never happen.
Policies that strengthen independent news organizations, aid local journalism, fund public media, and prevent the consolidation of media power in very few hands are not only possible – they are necessary for a healthy democracy.
When it comes to media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations like CNN shouldn’t be tools in the newest merger game.
