Late Thursday, while unconfirmed reports spread regarding a shooting at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins used social media, highlighting the uncertainty and directing people to her channel's 9pm newscast.
Although the network is hardly a flawless news source, her statement resonated to many. It remains one of the organizations where there exists grounded and largely dependable reporting – especially during breaking news situations like the one taking place near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious State During a Business Struggle
But CNN, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a uncertain state as two giant media corporations vie for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Whatever the outcome, the future of CNN has turned into a high-stakes game of mergers and acquisitions, rather than as a question of what serves the information-seeking public.
“Here is one more case of the profound systemic issues with roots in many years of policy decisions,” stated Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the Penn.
The speculation about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a broader point.
“It gets presented as a business story with key players as the protagonists, but there is hardly any discussion of the common good,” Pickard explained.
A Further Element: The Former President
The network's predicament is complicated by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his chief “fake news” foe.
Remember the cries of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his administration's retaliatory suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in press briefings.
Trump now says that the network requires new ownership. Many see this as a desire for 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 run 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 installed the conservative Bari Weiss, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that venerable news network.
A Possibility of Continued Uncertainty
It is important to note, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a standalone company. This might be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s not exactly a secure position. That structure could pave the way for CNN for a future sale. The cycle continues.
If you ask Timothy Wu, a lot of this is against the law, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance recently argued that anti-trust laws should block both deals.
“Either merger would be detrimental to the country, and both should be contested by anti-trust authorities,” Wu recently wrote.
The Core Challenge and a Way Ahead
No matter the outcome with this particular battle, the underlying crisis persists.
“Our current system is a very structure that undermines democracy, but we must resist learned helplessness,” Pickard said. Government actions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this hyper-commercialized monster, and new policy decisions can fix it.
Will that happen in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair will not confirm that the agency is independent? Change is highly improbable now, but that should not imply it will be impossible forever.
Policies that support independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, finance public media, and outlaw the concentration of media power in a handful of hands are achievable – they are essential for a functioning democracy.
Regarding media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations such as CNN must not be tools in the latest acquisition battle.
