This past Thursday night, amid swirling speculation concerning the Brown University gunman, the network's Kaitlan Collins used social media, highlighting the uncertainty and pointing viewers to her network’s 9pm newscast.
Although it is by no means a flawless news source, her statement seemed accurate to many. It is one of the broadcasters where there exists grounded and mostly reliable reporting – notably during breaking news situations like the one taking place close to a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious State Amid a Business Tug-of-War
But CNN, now middle-aged, finds itself in a vulnerable situation as two giant media empires battle over ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the fate of CNN has become part of a major game of corporate ownership, rather than as a question of what serves the news-consuming public.
“Here is one more case of the deep structural problems with roots in many years of policy decisions,” stated Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the University of Pennsylvania.
The conjecture about who will own Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – misses a more important point.
“It gets presented as a corporate drama with influential figures as the main characters, but there is hardly any discussion of the public interest,” Pickard explained.
The Complicating Layer: Donald Trump
The CNN scenario is complicated by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his primary “fake news” antagonist.
Remember the chants of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his team's disciplinary revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in official meetings.
Trump now asserts that CNN needs new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will insulate him from negative coverage and examination. That is one reason why he appears to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.
There is a basis to prefer that company 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 lead editor of that venerable news network.
An Outcome of Continued Uncertainty
Significantly, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a separate entity. This might be a relief to many at the network, but it’s hardly a safe harbor. That structure could set up CNN for another sale. It never ends.
In the view of 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 block both deals.
“Either merger would be bad for the country, and both should be opposed by the government,” Wu argued.
The Fundamental Problem and a Way Ahead
No matter the outcome regarding CNN, the underlying crisis persists.
“The present media landscape is a profoundly structure that undermines democracy, but we ought not succumb to the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard emphasized. Regulatory choices – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this profit-obsessed monster, and revised policy decisions can address it.
Can reform occur in an era where the head of the FCC refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Reform is a distant prospect now, but that should not imply it will not happen in the future.
Policies that support independent news organizations, aid local journalism, fund public media, and prohibit the concentration of media power in a handful of hands are achievable – they are necessary for a healthy democracy.
Regarding media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations including CNN shouldn’t be pawns in the newest acquisition battle.
