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.
Even though it is by no means a impeccable news source, her statement resonated to many. It stands as one of the broadcasters where one can locate fact-based and largely reliable reporting – particularly during crises like the one developing close to a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious Position During a High-Stakes Tug-of-War
But the news network, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a precarious state as two giant media conglomerates compete for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Regardless of who wins, the future of CNN has become part of a major game of business acquisition, instead of as a question of what helps the information-seeking public.
“Here is one more case of the fundamental flaws with origins in decades of policy decisions,” stated Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the University of Pennsylvania.
The conjecture about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – misses a larger point.
“It gets presented as a corporate drama with powerful individuals as the protagonists, but there is hardly any discussion of the public interest,” Pickard explained.
The Additional Element: Donald Trump
The CNN scenario is complicated by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his chief “fake news” adversary.
Remember the cries of “CNN sucks!” at his rallies, his team's disciplinary revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in White House briefings.
Trump now claims that CNN needs new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will protect him from negative coverage and examination. That is part of why he seems to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
He has grounds to prefer 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.
The company, owner of CBS News, also recently placed the conservative Bari Weiss, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that historic news network.
A Possibility of More Uncertainty
It is important to note, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a independent unit. That would be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s not exactly a safe harbor. That setup could pave the way for CNN for a future sale. The cycle continues.
According to Timothy Wu, a lot of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance stated that competition laws should disallow both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be bad for the country, and both should be challenged by regulators,” Wu stated.
The Core Issue and a Way Ahead
Regardless of the resolution with this particular battle, the bigger problem remains.
“The present media landscape is a highly structure that undermines democracy, but we shouldn’t give in to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard emphasized. Regulatory choices – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this profit-obsessed monster, and revised policy decisions can fix it.
Is this likely in an era where the head of the FCC refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Change is highly improbable now, but that should not imply it will not happen in the future.
Measures that support independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, subsidize public media, and prevent the accumulation of media power in too few hands are not only possible – they are vital for a healthy democracy.
Regarding media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations including CNN must not be pawns in the latest merger game.
