On Thursday evening, while unconfirmed reports spread concerning an incident at Brown University, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins took to social media, pointing out the conflicting information and guiding the public to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Although CNN is certainly not a impeccable news source, her message seemed accurate to many. It remains one of the organizations where one can locate reality-based and mostly trustworthy reporting – especially during breaking news situations like the one developing in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable Situation Amid a Corporate Battle
However the news network, now 45 years old, finds itself in a vulnerable state as two huge media corporations compete for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the fate of CNN has become part of a high-stakes game of mergers and acquisitions, rather than as a question of what helps the information-seeking public.
“This is yet another example of the fundamental flaws with origins in decades of regulatory actions,” stated Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the Penn.
The conjecture about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a broader point.
“It gets presented as a corporate drama with powerful individuals as the main characters, but there is very little discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard said.
The Additional Layer: Donald Trump
The CNN scenario is complicated by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his main “fake news” antagonist.
Remember the chants of “CNN sucks!” at his rallies, his team's disciplinary revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in press briefings.
Trump now claims that CNN needs new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will insulate him from journalistic oversight. That is a factor in why he seems to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.
Trump has reason to prefer that bidder more. For one thing, it is led by David Ellison, son of the Trump-friendly Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
The company, parent of CBS News, also recently appointed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that venerable news network.
An Outcome of Continued Uncertainty
It is important to note, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a standalone company. Such a move could be a relief to many at the network, but it’s not exactly a guarantee of stability. That setup could pave the way for CNN for another sale. There is no finish line.
In the view of Timothy Wu, much of this is illegal, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that anti-trust laws should disallow both deals.
“Both acquisition attempts would be detrimental to the country, and both should be challenged by anti-trust authorities,” Wu recently wrote.
The Fundamental Issue and a Way Ahead
No matter the outcome with this particular battle, the bigger problem endures.
“Our current system is a profoundly structure that undermines democracy, but we shouldn’t give in to learned helplessness,” Pickard said. Policy decisions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this overly commercial monster, and different policy decisions can address it.
Can reform occur in an era where the top communications regulator refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Reform is a distant prospect now, but that should not imply it will be impossible forever.
Policies that support independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, fund public media, and prohibit the accumulation of media power in too few hands are not only possible – they are essential for a robust democracy.
Regarding media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations including CNN cannot be pawns in the most recent merger game.
