🔗 Share this article

This past Thursday night, amid swirling speculation concerning an incident at Brown University, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, noting the confusion and guiding the public to her network’s 9pm newscast.

Although it is by no means a perfect news source, her statement rang true to many. It remains one of the broadcasters where one can locate reality-based and largely dependable reporting – especially during fast-moving events such as the one developing close to a New Hampshire storage facility.

An Uncertain Position Amid a High-Stakes Tug-of-War

However the news network, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a precarious situation as two massive media corporations vie for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.

No matter the result, the future of CNN has turned into a major game of mergers and acquisitions, instead of as a question of what helps the news-consuming public.

“This is yet another example of the profound systemic issues with origins in decades of regulatory actions,” said Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the Penn.

The debate about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a larger point.

“It gets presented as a business story with powerful individuals as the main characters, but there is very little discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard added.

The Additional Element: Donald Trump

This situation is complicated by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his primary “fake news” adversary.

Think back to the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at his rallies, his administration’s punitive suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in official meetings.

Trump now says that CNN needs new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will shield him from negative coverage and examination. That is one reason why he seems to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.

There is a basis to prefer that suitor more. For one thing, it is run by David Ellison, son of the Trump-friendly Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.

Paramount, parent of CBS News, also recently installed the conservative Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that historic news network.

A Future of More Instability

It is important to note, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a independent unit. This might be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s not exactly a safe harbor. That arrangement could set up CNN for a future sale. The cycle continues.

According to Timothy Wu, much of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance stated that competition laws should disallow both deals.

“Both acquisition attempts would be harmful to the country, and both should be challenged by the government,” Wu stated.

The Core Challenge and a Way Ahead

Whatever happens regarding CNN, the underlying crisis persists.

“Our current system is a very anti-democratic system, but we shouldn’t give in to the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard emphasized. Regulatory choices – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this overly commercial monster, and different policy decisions can address it.

Can reform occur in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Reform is a distant prospect now, but that doesn’t mean it will not happen in the future.

Initiatives that strengthen independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, subsidize public media, and outlaw the concentration of media power in too few hands are within reach – they are necessary for a healthy democracy.

In the world of media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations like CNN must not be tools in the latest merger game.