Late Thursday, as rumors swirled regarding an incident at Brown University, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins took to social media, highlighting the uncertainty and pointing viewers to her network’s 9pm newscast.
Although CNN is certainly not a impeccable news source, her statement resonated for a lot of people. It stands as one of the outlets where there exists fact-based and largely dependable reporting – notably during breaking news situations such as the one developing near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Vulnerable Situation Amid a Business Battle
But the news network, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a vulnerable position as two massive media corporations vie for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the destiny of CNN has become part of a high-risk game of mergers and acquisitions, not as a question of what helps the news-consuming public.
“This represents another instance 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 Pennsylvania University.
The conjecture about who will own Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a larger point.
“It gets presented as a business story with powerful individuals as the protagonists, but there is scant discussion of the public interest,” Pickard said.
A Further Element: Donald Trump
The network's predicament is made more complex by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his primary “fake news” foe.
Think back to the cries of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his administration's retaliatory suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in White House briefings.
Trump now asserts that CNN needs new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will shield him from criticism and scrutiny. That is a factor in why he appears to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
There is a basis to prefer that suitor more. For one thing, it is led by David Ellison, son of the Trump-friendly Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
Paramount, owner of CBS News, also recently installed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that venerable news network.
A Possibility of Continued Instability
Significantly, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a independent unit. Such a move could be a relief to many at the network, but it’s hardly a guarantee of stability. That structure could set up CNN for a future sale. The cycle continues.
In the view of Timothy Wu, much of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance recently argued that anti-trust laws should disallow both deals.
“Both acquisition attempts would be detrimental to the country, and both should be opposed by anti-trust authorities,” Wu argued.
The Fundamental Challenge and a Way Ahead
No matter the outcome in this situation, the bigger problem remains.
“The present media landscape is a very structure that undermines democracy, but we shouldn’t give in to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard said. Policy decisions – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this hyper-commercialized monster, and new policy decisions can tackle it.
Can reform occur in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair will not confirm that the agency is independent? Change is a distant prospect now, but that is not to say it will be impossible forever.
Policies that support independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, subsidize public media, and prevent the concentration of media power in a handful of hands are achievable – they are vital for a functioning democracy.
Regarding media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations like CNN cannot be tools in the latest acquisition battle.
