Late Thursday, amid swirling speculation regarding the Brown University gunman, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins took to social media, noting the confusion and guiding the public to her network’s 9pm newscast.
Even though CNN is certainly not a impeccable news source, her message rang true to many. It remains one of the organizations where you can find grounded and generally dependable reporting – especially during breaking news situations like the one unfolding close to a New Hampshire storage facility.
An Uncertain Position During a High-Stakes Tug-of-War
Yet CNN, now middle-aged, finds itself in a vulnerable position as two giant media empires battle over ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
Regardless of who wins, the fate of CNN has turned into a major game of business acquisition, not as a question of what helps the information-seeking public.
“Here is one more case of the deep structural problems with origins in many years of policy decisions,” noted Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the University of Pennsylvania.
The debate about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a broader point.
“It gets presented as a corporate drama with influential figures as the main characters, but there is hardly any discussion of the common good,” Pickard added.
A Further Factor: The Former President
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” foe.
Remember the cries of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his administration's retaliatory revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in official meetings.
Trump now says that the network requires new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will protect him from criticism and scrutiny. That is one reason why he seems to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.
There is a basis to like that suitor more. For one thing, it is led by David Ellison, son of the ally of Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
Paramount, parent of CBS News, also recently placed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that storied news network.
A Future of More Instability
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 hardly a safe harbor. That setup could pave the way for CNN for yet another acquisition. The cycle continues.
In the view of Timothy Wu, much of this is against the law, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance stated that anti-trust laws should prohibit both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be harmful to the country, and both should be contested by regulators,” Wu argued.
The Fundamental Problem and a Way Ahead
No matter the outcome regarding CNN, the underlying crisis persists.
“What we have now is a profoundly system hostile to democracy, but we ought not succumb to learned helplessness,” Pickard noted. Government actions – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this hyper-commercialized monster, and new policy decisions can tackle it.
Is this likely in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Change is a distant prospect now, but that is not to say it will not happen in the future.
Measures that bolster independent news organizations, aid local journalism, fund public media, and outlaw the accumulation of media power in a handful of hands are not only possible – they are vital for a robust democracy.
Regarding media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations like CNN must not be pieces in the newest acquisition battle.
