On Thursday evening, amid swirling speculation regarding the Brown University gunman, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins took to social media, highlighting the uncertainty and directing people to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Although it is by no means a perfect news source, her words resonated for numerous observers. It is one of the organizations where you can find reality-based and mostly reliable reporting – notably during fast-moving events such as the one developing close to a New Hampshire storage facility.
An Uncertain Position Amid a Corporate Struggle
However CNN, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a precarious position as two huge media conglomerates compete for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the destiny of CNN has become part of a high-stakes game of business acquisition, instead of as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.
“This represents another instance of the profound systemic issues with roots in decades of policy decisions,” stated Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the Penn.
The speculation about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a larger point.
“It is often framed as a financial tale with influential figures as the central actors, but there is scant discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard explained.
The Additional Element: Political Influence
The network's predicament is further muddied by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his primary “fake news” antagonist.
Recall 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 press briefings.
Trump now asserts that the network requires new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will protect him from criticism and scrutiny. That is part of why he seems to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.
Trump has reason to favor 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.
The company, parent of CBS News, also recently installed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that storied news network.
A Possibility of More Uncertainty
Notably, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a standalone company. Such a move could be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s far from a secure position. That structure could pave the way for CNN for another sale. The cycle continues.
If you ask Timothy Wu, a lot of this is illegal, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that anti-trust laws should disallow both deals.
“Both acquisition attempts would be harmful to the country, and both should be challenged by anti-trust authorities,” Wu stated.
The Fundamental Challenge and a Potential Solution
Whatever happens regarding CNN, the larger issue remains.
“The present media landscape is a very anti-democratic system, but we must resist learned helplessness,” Pickard emphasized. Policy decisions – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this hyper-commercialized monster, and new policy decisions can tackle it.
Will that happen in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Overhaul is a distant prospect now, but that doesn’t mean it will not happen in the future.
Measures that support independent news organizations, aid local journalism, finance public media, and outlaw the concentration of media power in too few hands are achievable – they are essential for a robust democracy.
When it comes to media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations like CNN must not be pawns in the newest corporate chess match.
