Late Thursday, as rumors swirled concerning a shooting at Brown University, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins used social media, pointing out the conflicting information and guiding the public to her network’s 9pm newscast.
Even though it is by no means a impeccable news source, her statement rang true for numerous observers. It stands as one of the outlets where you can find grounded and mostly trustworthy reporting – particularly during fast-moving events like the one unfolding in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious Position Amid a Corporate Struggle
Yet CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a vulnerable situation as two massive media empires compete for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Whatever the outcome, the fate of CNN has been drawn into a major game of business acquisition, not as a question of what helps the information-seeking public.
“This represents another instance of the fundamental flaws with roots in many years of policy decisions,” stated Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the Penn.
The debate about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a more important point.
“It is often framed as a business story with influential figures as the main characters, but there is hardly any discussion of the public interest,” Pickard added.
The Additional Element: The Former President
This situation is made more complex by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his primary “fake news” adversary.
Remember the chants of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his administration’s punitive suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in White House briefings.
Trump now claims that the network requires new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will protect him from journalistic oversight. That is a factor in why he seems to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
There is a basis to like that suitor more. For one thing, it is led by David Ellison, son of the pro-Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
Paramount, parent of CBS News, also recently installed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that venerable news network.
A Possibility of More Turmoil
Notably, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a separate entity. This might be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s far from a secure position. That arrangement could position CNN for a future sale. There is no finish line.
In the view of Timothy Wu, a lot of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance stated that anti-trust laws should block both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be harmful to the country, and both should be opposed by regulators,” Wu argued.
The Bigger Challenge and a Path Forward
Whatever happens regarding CNN, the larger issue remains.
“What we have now is a very structure that undermines democracy, but we must resist learned helplessness,” Pickard emphasized. Regulatory choices – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this profit-obsessed monster, and different policy decisions can fix it.
Can reform occur in an era where the top communications regulator refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Overhaul is a distant prospect now, but that is not to say it will be impossible forever.
Policies that bolster independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, fund public media, and prohibit the consolidation of media power in too few hands are within reach – they are necessary for a healthy democracy.
Regarding media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations including CNN must not be pawns in the latest corporate chess match.
