Late Thursday, while unconfirmed reports spread concerning the Brown University gunman, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins used social media, highlighting the uncertainty and guiding the public to her network’s 9pm newscast.
Even though CNN is certainly not a impeccable news source, her message rang true to many. It stands as one of the broadcasters where there exists reality-based and generally trustworthy reporting – particularly during fast-moving events such as the one taking place close to a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable Position Amid a Business Tug-of-War
But the news network, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a precarious state as two giant media corporations battle over ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the fate of CNN has been drawn into a high-risk game of mergers and acquisitions, instead of as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.
“This represents another instance of the deep structural problems with roots in many years of policy decisions,” said Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the University of Pennsylvania.
The speculation about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a broader point.
“It gets presented as a corporate drama with powerful individuals as the protagonists, but there is scant discussion of the public interest,” Pickard explained.
A Further Factor: The Former President
The CNN scenario is further muddied by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his primary “fake news” foe.
Remember the cries of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his administration's retaliatory withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in press briefings.
Trump now claims that CNN needs new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will insulate him from journalistic oversight. That is one reason why he appears to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
There is a basis to favor that suitor more. For one thing, it is run 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 right-leaning Bari Weiss, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that historic news network.
An Outcome of More Turmoil
It is important to note, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a separate entity. That would be a relief to many at the network, but it’s far from a guarantee of stability. That structure could position CNN for another sale. It never ends.
In the view of Timothy Wu, a lot of this is illegal, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance recently argued that anti-trust laws should prohibit both deals.
“Both acquisition attempts would be harmful to the country, and both should be opposed by the government,” Wu recently wrote.
The Bigger Issue and a Path Forward
Whatever happens with this particular battle, the underlying crisis remains.
“The present media landscape is a very structure that undermines democracy, but we shouldn’t give in to the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard noted. Policy decisions – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this profit-obsessed monster, and different policy decisions can fix it.
Is this likely in an era where the head of the FCC won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Reform is a distant prospect now, but that is not to say it will never happen.
Policies that strengthen independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, fund public media, and prohibit the consolidation of media power in a handful of hands are within reach – they are essential for a robust democracy.
Regarding media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations including CNN must not be pawns in the latest corporate chess match.
