This past Thursday night, as rumors swirled regarding the Brown University gunman, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins used social media, noting the confusion and guiding the public to her network’s 9pm newscast.
Although the network is hardly a perfect news source, her words seemed accurate to many. It is one of the outlets where one can locate grounded and mostly dependable reporting – especially during breaking news situations such as the one taking place near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious Situation During a Corporate Tug-of-War
Yet CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a precarious situation as two giant media corporations vie for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.
Regardless of who wins, the fate of CNN has become part of a high-risk game of corporate ownership, rather than as a question of what helps the information-seeking public.
“This is yet another example of the deep structural problems with origins in many years of policy decisions,” stated Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the University of Pennsylvania.
The conjecture about who will own Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a broader point.
“The narrative is crafted as a corporate drama with influential figures as the central actors, but there is hardly any discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard said.
The Complicating Element: Political Influence
The network's predicament is complicated by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his primary “fake news” antagonist.
Think back to the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at his rallies, his administration's retaliatory withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in press briefings.
Trump now says that CNN needs new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will protect him from journalistic oversight. That is part of why he seems to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.
He has grounds to like that suitor more. For one thing, it is led by David Ellison, son of the pro-Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
The company, owner of CBS News, also recently placed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that historic news network.
A Possibility of Continued Instability
Significantly, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a separate entity. Such a move could be a relief to many at the network, but it’s not exactly a secure position. That setup could position CNN for another sale. There is no finish line.
According to Timothy Wu, much of this is illegal, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance stated that anti-trust laws should prohibit both deals.
“Both acquisition attempts would be bad for the country, and both should be opposed by regulators,” Wu recently wrote.
The Core Problem and a Path Forward
Whatever happens with this particular battle, the larger issue remains.
“Our current system is a very system hostile to democracy, but we ought not succumb to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard emphasized. Government actions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this overly commercial monster, and different policy decisions can address it.
Is this likely in an era where the top communications regulator refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Overhaul is very unlikely now, but that doesn’t mean it will be impossible forever.
Policies that support independent news organizations, aid local journalism, subsidize public media, and prevent the accumulation of media power in very few hands are not only possible – they are essential for a functioning democracy.
Regarding media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations including CNN must not be tools in the latest corporate chess match.
