This past Thursday night, as rumors swirled concerning a shooting at Brown University, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins used social media, pointing out the conflicting information and guiding the public to her network’s 9pm newscast.
Even though CNN is certainly not a perfect news source, her statement rang true for numerous observers. It remains one of the organizations where you can find reality-based and mostly dependable reporting – especially during crises such as the one taking place close to a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable State Amid a Business Battle
However CNN, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a uncertain state as two huge media conglomerates compete for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
Whatever the outcome, the fate of CNN has been drawn into a major game of mergers and acquisitions, instead of as a question of what helps the information-seeking public.
“Here is one more case of the deep structural problems with origins in decades of governmental choices,” said Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the University of Pennsylvania.
The speculation about who will own Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – misses a more important point.
“The narrative is crafted as a financial tale with influential figures as the protagonists, but there is hardly any discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard explained.
A Further Factor: Political Influence
The CNN scenario is complicated by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his main “fake news” adversary.
Think back to the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at his rallies, his administration’s punitive revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in White House briefings.
Trump now says that CNN needs new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will insulate him from criticism and scrutiny. That is a factor in why he appears to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.
There is a basis to like that company more. For one thing, it is controlled by David Ellison, son of the ally of Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
The company, owner of CBS News, also recently appointed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that venerable news network.
A Possibility of Continued Turmoil
It is important to note, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a separate entity. This might be a relief to many at the network, but it’s hardly a guarantee of stability. That arrangement could set up CNN for a future sale. There is no finish line.
According to Timothy Wu, much of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance recently argued that anti-trust laws should disallow both deals.
“Both acquisition attempts would be bad for the country, and both should be opposed by anti-trust authorities,” Wu recently wrote.
The Core Challenge and a Path Forward
Regardless of the resolution with this particular battle, the underlying crisis persists.
“Our current system is a highly anti-democratic system, but we ought not succumb to learned helplessness,” Pickard said. Policy decisions – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this hyper-commercialized monster, and different policy decisions can tackle it.
Will that happen in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Reform is highly improbable now, but that should not imply it will be impossible forever.
Initiatives that bolster independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, fund public media, and prevent the concentration of media power in very few hands are within reach – they are necessary for a robust democracy.
In the world of media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations including CNN must not be pawns in the latest acquisition battle.
