Late Thursday, amid swirling speculation concerning an incident at Brown University, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins used social media, pointing out the conflicting information and pointing viewers to her channel's 9pm newscast.
While it is by no means a impeccable news source, her statement seemed accurate for numerous observers. It is one of the organizations where there exists fact-based and largely trustworthy reporting – particularly during breaking news situations such as the one developing near a New Hampshire storage facility.
An Uncertain Situation Amid a High-Stakes Tug-of-War
However CNN, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a vulnerable situation as two huge media corporations compete for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Whatever the outcome, the destiny of CNN has turned into a high-stakes game of business acquisition, not as a question of what helps the information-seeking public.
“This represents another instance of the profound systemic issues with origins in decades of governmental choices,” noted Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the University of Pennsylvania.
The speculation about who will own Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a larger point.
“It gets presented as a corporate drama with influential figures as the protagonists, but there is scant discussion of the public interest,” Pickard explained.
A Further Factor: Donald Trump
The network's predicament is made more complex by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his chief “fake news” adversary.
Recall the chants of “CNN sucks!” at his rallies, his administration's retaliatory revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in press briefings.
Trump now says that CNN needs new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will insulate him from negative coverage and examination. That is one reason why he seems to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.
He has grounds to prefer that suitor more. For one thing, it is controlled by David Ellison, son of the Trump-friendly Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
Paramount, parent of CBS News, also recently appointed the conservative Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that venerable news network.
An Outcome of Continued Instability
It is important to note, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a separate entity. This might be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s not exactly a safe harbor. That arrangement could pave the way for CNN for yet another acquisition. There is no finish line.
If you ask Timothy Wu, much of this is illegal, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance recently argued that competition laws should block both deals.
“Both acquisition attempts would be harmful to the country, and both should be contested by the government,” Wu argued.
The Fundamental Issue and a Potential Solution
Regardless of the resolution in this situation, the underlying crisis endures.
“What we have now is a highly structure that undermines democracy, but we ought not succumb to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard said. Government actions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this overly commercial monster, and revised policy decisions can tackle it.
Is this likely in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Reform is highly improbable now, but that should not imply it will never happen.
Initiatives that support independent news organizations, aid local journalism, finance public media, and prohibit the consolidation of media power in a handful of hands are achievable – 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 most recent merger game.
