🔗 Share this article

This past Thursday night, while unconfirmed reports spread concerning a shooting at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins took to social media, pointing out the conflicting information and pointing viewers to her network’s 9pm newscast.

While CNN is certainly not a perfect news source, her message rang true for a lot of people. It is one of the broadcasters where one can locate grounded and mostly dependable reporting – especially during breaking news situations like the one developing close to a New Hampshire storage facility.

An Uncertain Situation During a High-Stakes Tug-of-War

However the news network, now middle-aged, finds itself in a vulnerable situation as two massive media corporations battle over ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.

No matter the result, the future of CNN has become part of a major game of corporate ownership, rather than as a question of what serves the news-consuming public.

“Here is one more case of the profound systemic issues with roots in decades of regulatory actions,” stated Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the University of Pennsylvania.

The conjecture about who will own Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a more important point.

“It is often framed as a business story with influential figures as the protagonists, but there is very little discussion of the common good,” Pickard explained.

The Additional Element: Political Influence

This situation is further muddied by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his main “fake news” antagonist.

Recall the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his administration's retaliatory revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in official meetings.

Trump now asserts 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 come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.

Trump has reason to favor that suitor more. For one thing, it is controlled by David Ellison, son of the Trump-friendly Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.

The company, owner of CBS News, also recently placed the conservative Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that storied news network.

A Possibility of Continued Instability

Notably, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a standalone company. Such a move could be a relief to many at the network, but it’s hardly a secure position. That setup could pave the way for CNN for a future sale. The cycle continues.

If you ask Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is against the law, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance recently argued that anti-trust laws should prohibit both deals.

“Each proposed deal would be bad for the country, and both should be challenged by the government,” Wu stated.

The Fundamental Challenge and a Potential Solution

Whatever happens regarding CNN, the bigger problem persists.

“What we have now is a profoundly anti-democratic system, but we ought not succumb to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard emphasized. Government actions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this overly commercial monster, and revised policy decisions can tackle it.

Is this likely in an era where the head of the FCC will not confirm that the agency is independent? Overhaul is highly improbable now, but that is not to say it will be impossible forever.

Initiatives that support independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, subsidize public media, and prevent the consolidation of media power in a handful of hands are within reach – they are essential for a functioning democracy.

When it comes to media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations including CNN shouldn’t be tools in the most recent acquisition battle.