Late Thursday, amid swirling speculation concerning an incident at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins used social media, pointing out the conflicting information and directing people to her channel's 9pm newscast.
While the network is hardly a perfect news source, her message rang true for numerous observers. It stands as one of the organizations where there exists reality-based and mostly reliable reporting – notably during fast-moving events such as the one unfolding near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious State Amid a Business Battle
However CNN, now middle-aged, finds itself in a uncertain situation as two huge media empires battle over ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Regardless of who wins, the fate of CNN has become part of a major game of corporate ownership, rather than as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.
“This represents another instance of the profound systemic issues with roots in many years of governmental choices,” noted Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the University of Pennsylvania.
The conjecture about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – misses a larger point.
“It gets presented as a financial tale with powerful individuals as the central actors, but there is very little discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard explained.
The Complicating Layer: Donald Trump
The CNN scenario is complicated by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his chief “fake news” foe.
Think back to the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his administration's retaliatory revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in official meetings.
Trump now asserts that the network requires new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will protect him from negative coverage and examination. That is part of why he appears to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
There is a basis 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.
Paramount, owner of CBS News, also recently appointed the conservative Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that venerable news network.
An Outcome of Continued Uncertainty
It is important to note, if Netflix wins, 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 far from a guarantee of stability. That setup could set up CNN for yet another acquisition. There is no finish line.
If you ask Timothy Wu, much of this is against the law, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that competition laws should prohibit both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be detrimental to the country, and both should be contested by regulators,” Wu recently wrote.
The Bigger Issue and a Way Ahead
Regardless of the resolution in this situation, the larger issue endures.
“Our current system is a very structure that undermines democracy, but we shouldn’t give in to the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard emphasized. Policy decisions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this overly commercial monster, and new policy decisions can address it.
Will that happen in an era where the head of the FCC will not confirm that the agency is independent? Change is a distant prospect now, but that doesn’t mean it will never happen.
Measures that strengthen independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, subsidize public media, and prohibit the accumulation of media power in a handful of hands are within reach – they are necessary for a robust democracy.
Regarding media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations like CNN shouldn’t be pieces in the most recent acquisition battle.
