On Thursday evening, while unconfirmed reports spread regarding the Brown University gunman, the network's Kaitlan Collins used social media, noting the confusion and pointing viewers to her network’s 9pm newscast.
While the network is hardly a impeccable news source, her message seemed accurate for numerous observers. It is one of the broadcasters where you can find fact-based and mostly trustworthy reporting – particularly during fast-moving events such as the one unfolding near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable Situation During a Business Tug-of-War
But CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a uncertain position as two giant media conglomerates battle over ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Whatever the outcome, the fate of CNN has turned into a major game of mergers and acquisitions, instead of as a question of what helps the information-seeking public.
“Here is one more case of the deep structural problems with roots in many years of policy decisions,” said Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the Penn.
The debate about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a broader point.
“It is often framed as a business story with influential figures as the main characters, but there is very little discussion of the common good,” Pickard said.
A Further Element: The Former President
This situation is further muddied by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his primary “fake news” adversary.
Recall the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his team's disciplinary withdrawal 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 shield him from criticism and scrutiny. That is part of why he appears to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
There is a basis to like that suitor more. For one thing, it is run by David Ellison, son of the ally of Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
The company, parent of CBS News, also recently installed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that storied news network.
A Possibility of More Instability
Notably, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a standalone company. That would be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s hardly a safe harbor. That setup could pave the way for CNN for another sale. The cycle continues.
If you ask Timothy Wu, a lot of this is against the law, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that competition laws should prohibit both deals.
“Both acquisition attempts would be bad for the country, and both should be challenged by the government,” Wu argued.
The Core Problem and a Way Ahead
Whatever happens in this situation, the larger issue endures.
“What we have now is a very anti-democratic system, but we ought not succumb to the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard said. Policy decisions – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this overly commercial monster, and revised policy decisions can tackle it.
Will that happen in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Change is very unlikely now, but that is not to say it will never happen.
Policies that bolster independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, subsidize public media, and prevent the accumulation of media power in very few hands are achievable – they are essential for a robust democracy.
In the world of media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations like CNN cannot be pieces in the most recent acquisition battle.
