Late Thursday, as rumors swirled concerning an incident at Brown University, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins took to social media, highlighting the uncertainty and directing people to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Even though it is by no means a flawless news source, her message resonated to many. It is one of the broadcasters where one can locate reality-based and generally trustworthy reporting – particularly during crises like the one developing near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious Position Amid a High-Stakes Battle
Yet CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a precarious situation as two massive media empires compete for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Regardless of who wins, the destiny of CNN has turned into a major game of mergers and acquisitions, rather than as a question of what serves the information-seeking public.
“This represents another instance of the fundamental flaws with origins in decades of regulatory actions,” noted Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the Pennsylvania University.
The conjecture about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a broader point.
“The narrative is crafted as a corporate drama with key players as the protagonists, but there is very little discussion of the common good,” Pickard explained.
The Additional Element: Political Influence
The CNN scenario is further muddied by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his main “fake news” adversary.
Think back to the cries of “CNN sucks!” at his rallies, his team's disciplinary suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in press briefings.
Trump now claims that the network requires new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will shield him from journalistic oversight. That is part of why he seems to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.
Trump has reason to favor that bidder 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, owner of CBS News, also recently placed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that venerable news network.
A Future of Further Instability
Significantly, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a independent unit. Such a move could be a relief to many at the network, but it’s hardly a secure position. That setup could pave the way for CNN for a future sale. The cycle continues.
If you ask Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance stated that competition laws should prohibit both deals.
“Either merger would be detrimental to the country, and both should be contested by regulators,” Wu recently wrote.
The Core Problem and a Potential Solution
Regardless of the resolution in this situation, the larger issue persists.
“The present media landscape is a very structure that undermines democracy, but we must resist learned helplessness,” Pickard emphasized. Government actions – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this overly commercial monster, and new policy decisions can tackle it.
Can reform occur in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Reform is a distant prospect now, but that doesn’t mean it will not happen in the future.
Measures that strengthen independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, fund public media, and prohibit the consolidation of media power in a handful of hands are within reach – they are vital for a functioning democracy.
Regarding media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations like CNN must not be tools in the latest corporate chess match.
