On Thursday evening, amid swirling speculation concerning an incident at Brown University, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins took to social media, noting the confusion and pointing viewers to her network’s 9pm newscast.
Even though the network is hardly a impeccable news source, her statement resonated to many. It is one of the organizations where there exists grounded and generally trustworthy reporting – particularly during fast-moving events such as the one unfolding near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious State During a Corporate Struggle
However CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a precarious state as two huge media corporations compete for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the destiny of CNN has been drawn into a major game of corporate ownership, rather than as a question of what serves the news-consuming public.
“This represents another instance of the profound systemic issues with roots in many years of governmental choices,” said Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the Penn.
The speculation about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a more important point.
“The narrative is crafted as a financial tale with influential figures as the main characters, but there is scant discussion of the common good,” Pickard added.
The Complicating Layer: Political Influence
The network's predicament is made more complex by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his primary “fake news” foe.
Think back to the chants of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his administration’s punitive withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in official meetings.
Trump now says that the network requires new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will insulate him from journalistic oversight. That is one reason why he seems to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.
There is a basis to favor that company more. For one thing, it is led by David Ellison, son of the pro-Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
Paramount, owner of CBS News, also recently appointed the conservative Bari Weiss, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that historic news network.
An Outcome of More Instability
Significantly, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a separate entity. That would be a relief to many at the network, but it’s hardly a guarantee of stability. That setup could position CNN for yet another acquisition. There is no finish line.
According to Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is illegal, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance stated that anti-trust laws should prohibit both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be bad for the country, and both should be contested by anti-trust authorities,” Wu recently wrote.
The Bigger Issue and a Path Forward
No matter the outcome with this particular battle, the bigger problem persists.
“What we have now is a very system hostile to democracy, but we shouldn’t give in to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard noted. Policy decisions – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this hyper-commercialized monster, and revised policy decisions can fix it.
Will that happen in an era where the top communications regulator will not confirm that the agency is independent? Change is highly improbable now, but that should not imply it will never happen.
Policies that strengthen independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, fund public media, and outlaw the consolidation of media power in too few hands are achievable – they are essential for a functioning democracy.
In the world of media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations like CNN shouldn’t be pieces in the newest corporate chess match.
