This past Thursday night, while unconfirmed reports spread about an incident at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins took to social media, noting the confusion and pointing viewers to her network’s 9pm newscast.
Even though CNN is certainly not a perfect news source, her message resonated for a lot of people. It stands as one of the outlets where you can find grounded and largely reliable reporting – especially during breaking news situations like the one taking place in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious State Amid a High-Stakes Struggle
But the news network, now 45 years old, finds itself in a precarious position as two huge media empires battle over ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the future of CNN has turned into a high-stakes game of mergers and acquisitions, instead of as a question of what serves the news-consuming public.
“This represents another instance of the profound systemic issues with origins in many years of regulatory actions,” noted Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the University of Pennsylvania.
The conjecture about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a more important point.
“The narrative is crafted as a financial tale with powerful individuals as the protagonists, but there is scant discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard explained.
The Complicating Element: Political Influence
This situation is further muddied by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his primary “fake news” antagonist.
Think back to the cries of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his administration’s punitive revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in White House briefings.
Trump now claims that CNN needs new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will protect him from criticism and scrutiny. That is a factor in why he appears to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
Trump has reason to prefer that company 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, owner of CBS News, also recently placed the conservative Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that storied news network.
A Future of Further Instability
It is important to note, if Netflix is successful, 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 guarantee of stability. That structure could position CNN for another sale. There is no finish line.
If you ask Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is against the law, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance recently argued that competition laws should disallow both deals.
“Either merger would be harmful to the country, and both should be opposed by the government,” Wu stated.
The Core Issue and a Path Forward
Regardless of the resolution with this particular battle, the bigger problem endures.
“The present media landscape is a profoundly anti-democratic system, but we ought not succumb to the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard said. Government actions – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this hyper-commercialized monster, and different policy decisions can fix it.
Will that happen in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Reform is very unlikely now, but that is not to say it will be impossible forever.
Policies that strengthen independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, finance public media, and outlaw the consolidation of media power in a handful of hands are within reach – they are vital for a functioning democracy.
In the world of media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations like CNN must not be tools in the most recent acquisition battle.
