On Thursday evening, as rumors swirled regarding a shooting at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, highlighting the uncertainty and guiding the public to her network’s 9pm newscast.
While CNN is certainly not a flawless news source, her words seemed accurate for a lot of people. It remains one of the outlets where there exists reality-based and generally reliable reporting – especially during crises such as the one developing in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.
An Uncertain State During a High-Stakes Battle
Yet CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a precarious state as two huge media conglomerates compete for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the fate of CNN has become part of a high-stakes game of business acquisition, rather than as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.
“Here is one more case of the profound systemic issues with roots in decades of regulatory actions,” noted Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the University of Pennsylvania.
The debate about who will own Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a more important point.
“It gets presented as a financial tale with influential figures as the main characters, but there is scant discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard said.
The Complicating Element: Donald Trump
The CNN scenario is made more complex by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his main “fake news” antagonist.
Recall the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his administration’s punitive revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in official meetings.
Trump now asserts that CNN needs new ownership. This can be interpreted 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 unsolicited offer.
There is a basis to prefer that suitor 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 placed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that historic news network.
A Possibility of Further Instability
It is important to note, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a independent unit. That would be a relief to many at the network, but it’s not exactly a secure position. That setup could position CNN for a future sale. There is no finish line.
According to Timothy Wu, much of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance recently argued that competition laws should prohibit both deals.
“Both acquisition attempts would be bad for the country, and both should be challenged by regulators,” Wu recently wrote.
The Bigger Issue and a Path Forward
Whatever happens in this situation, the underlying crisis endures.
“The present media landscape is a highly anti-democratic system, but we shouldn’t give in to the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard said. Government actions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this hyper-commercialized monster, and new policy decisions can fix 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 should not imply it will not happen in the future.
Initiatives that support independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, subsidize public media, and prevent the concentration of media power in too few hands are within reach – they are essential for a healthy democracy.
When it comes to media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations such as CNN cannot be pieces in the newest merger game.
