On Thursday evening, as rumors swirled regarding the Brown University gunman, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, noting the confusion and guiding the public to her network’s 9pm newscast.
Even though it is by no means a flawless news source, her words resonated for numerous observers. It remains one of the broadcasters where one can locate grounded and generally reliable reporting – especially during fast-moving events such as the one developing in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.
An Uncertain State During a Corporate Battle
However CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a vulnerable position as two giant media conglomerates compete for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
Whatever the outcome, the destiny of CNN has turned into a high-risk game of mergers and acquisitions, instead of as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.
“Here is one more case of the deep structural problems with roots in decades of governmental choices,” stated Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the University of Pennsylvania.
The debate about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – misses a broader point.
“It gets presented as a business story with powerful individuals as the main characters, but there is hardly any discussion of the common good,” Pickard said.
A Further Element: Donald Trump
The network's predicament is complicated by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his main “fake news” antagonist.
Remember the cries 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 says that the network requires new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will shield him from negative coverage and examination. That is one reason why he seems to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
He has grounds to prefer that suitor 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, parent of CBS News, also recently appointed the conservative Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that storied news network.
A Future of Further Instability
Significantly, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a independent unit. Such a move could be a relief to many at the network, but it’s hardly a secure position. That setup could set up CNN for a future sale. There is no finish line.
If you ask Timothy Wu, much of this is illegal, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that competition laws should disallow both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be bad for the country, and both should be contested by anti-trust authorities,” Wu argued.
The Bigger Issue and a Path Forward
Regardless of the resolution with this particular battle, the larger issue remains.
“What we have now is a very structure that undermines 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 tackle it.
Is this likely in an era where the top communications regulator won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Reform is highly improbable now, but that doesn’t mean it will be impossible forever.
Measures that bolster independent news organizations, aid local journalism, fund public media, and outlaw the concentration of media power in very few hands are not only possible – they are essential for a healthy democracy.
Regarding media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations including CNN must not be pawns in the most recent corporate chess match.
