Late Thursday, amid swirling speculation about an incident at Brown University, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins used social media, noting the confusion and pointing viewers to her network’s 9pm newscast.
Although CNN is certainly not a impeccable news source, her words seemed accurate to many. It is one of the organizations where there exists grounded and generally reliable reporting – particularly during crises like the one unfolding near a New Hampshire storage facility.
An Uncertain Situation Amid a High-Stakes Struggle
Yet CNN, now middle-aged, finds itself in a uncertain state as two huge media conglomerates vie for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
Whatever the outcome, the future of CNN has become part of a major game of business acquisition, rather than as a question of what helps the news-consuming public.
“Here is one more case of the profound systemic issues with roots in many years of regulatory actions,” said Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the Penn.
The debate about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a larger point.
“It is often framed as a corporate drama with influential figures as the protagonists, but there is scant discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard said.
The Additional Factor: Donald Trump
The CNN scenario is further muddied by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his primary “fake news” foe.
Recall the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his administration’s punitive revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in White House briefings.
Trump now claims that the network requires new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will protect him from negative coverage and examination. That is a factor in why he seems to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.
Trump has reason to prefer that bidder 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 right-leaning Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that historic news network.
An Outcome of Continued Uncertainty
Notably, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a separate entity. Such a move could be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s far from a safe harbor. That arrangement could pave the way for CNN for yet another acquisition. There is no finish line.
If you ask Timothy Wu, a lot of this is illegal, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance stated that anti-trust laws should disallow both deals.
“Both acquisition attempts would be harmful to the country, and both should be challenged by regulators,” Wu stated.
The Bigger Problem and a Path Forward
Whatever happens with this particular battle, the underlying crisis remains.
“What we have now is a profoundly anti-democratic system, but we must resist a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard said. Regulatory choices – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this hyper-commercialized monster, and new policy decisions can tackle it.
Can reform occur in an era where the top communications regulator will not confirm that the agency is independent? Reform is a distant prospect now, but that is not to say it will never happen.
Policies that support independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, finance public media, and prohibit the accumulation of media power in a handful of hands are within reach – they are essential for a robust democracy.
In the world of media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations including CNN cannot be pieces in the most recent merger game.
