This past Thursday night, while unconfirmed reports spread concerning the Brown University gunman, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, pointing out the conflicting information and directing people to her network’s 9pm newscast.
Although CNN is certainly not a perfect news source, her statement resonated for a lot of people. It is one of the organizations where you can find grounded and generally reliable reporting – particularly during fast-moving events like the one unfolding near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable Position During a Corporate Struggle
However CNN, now middle-aged, finds itself in a uncertain position as two giant media empires compete for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the destiny of CNN has turned into a major game of corporate ownership, instead of as a question of what benefits the news-consuming public.
“This is yet another example of the fundamental flaws with origins in many years of policy decisions,” said Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the University of Pennsylvania.
The conjecture about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a broader point.
“It is often framed as a corporate drama with powerful individuals as the protagonists, but there is scant discussion of the public interest,” Pickard said.
A Further Factor: The Former President
This situation is made more complex by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his primary “fake news” adversary.
Remember the chants of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his administration's retaliatory suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in official meetings.
Trump now says that CNN needs new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will protect 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.
He has grounds to favor that bidder 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.
The company, parent of CBS News, also recently appointed the conservative Bari Weiss, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that venerable news network.
A Possibility of Continued Instability
Notably, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a standalone company. Such a move could be a relief to many at the network, but it’s hardly a guarantee of stability. That setup could pave the way for CNN for a future sale. The cycle continues.
If you ask Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance stated that competition laws should prohibit both deals.
“Both acquisition attempts would be detrimental to the country, and both should be opposed by the government,” Wu recently wrote.
The Core Challenge and a Way Ahead
Whatever happens with this particular battle, the larger issue 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 said. Policy decisions – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this profit-obsessed monster, and new policy decisions can fix it.
Is this likely in an era where the top communications regulator will not confirm that the agency is independent? Reform is very unlikely now, but that doesn’t mean it will never happen.
Measures that strengthen independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, subsidize public media, and prevent the consolidation of media power in a handful of hands are achievable – they are necessary for a functioning democracy.
In the world of media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations including CNN must not be pawns in the latest acquisition battle.
