Late Thursday, while unconfirmed reports spread about a shooting at Brown University, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, highlighting the uncertainty and pointing viewers to her network’s 9pm newscast.
While CNN is certainly not a impeccable news source, her words seemed accurate for a lot of people. It is one of the broadcasters where one can locate reality-based and largely trustworthy reporting – notably during fast-moving events like the one taking place near a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious Situation During a High-Stakes Struggle
However CNN, now middle-aged, finds itself in a uncertain situation as two huge media conglomerates battle over ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
No matter the result, the fate of CNN has turned into a high-risk game of business acquisition, rather than as a question of what serves the information-seeking public.
“Here is one more case of the fundamental flaws with origins in many years of governmental choices,” stated Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the Pennsylvania University.
The conjecture about who will own Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a broader point.
“It is often framed as a business story with powerful individuals as the main characters, but there is scant discussion of the public interest,” Pickard said.
The Additional Element: Donald Trump
The CNN scenario is further muddied by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his primary “fake news” antagonist.
Think back to the chants of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his team's disciplinary suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in official meetings.
Trump now says that the network requires new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will protect him from journalistic oversight. That is a factor in why he appears to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
He has grounds to favor 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.
Paramount, parent 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 Possibility of Further Instability
It is important to note, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a standalone company. Such a move could be a relief to many at the network, but it’s hardly a secure position. That setup could position CNN for yet another acquisition. It never ends.
In the view of Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is against the law, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that anti-trust laws should block both deals.
“Both acquisition attempts would be harmful to the country, and both should be challenged by the government,” Wu stated.
The Fundamental Problem and a Way Ahead
Whatever happens in this situation, the underlying crisis persists.
“Our current system is a very anti-democratic system, but we ought not succumb to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard emphasized. Regulatory choices – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this overly commercial monster, and different policy decisions can address it.
Will that happen in an era where the head of the FCC won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Overhaul is a distant prospect now, but that doesn’t mean it will never happen.
Measures that strengthen independent news organizations, aid local journalism, finance public media, and prohibit the accumulation of media power in very few hands are not only possible – they are vital for a robust democracy.
Regarding media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations including CNN cannot be pawns in the most recent acquisition battle.
