On Thursday evening, while unconfirmed reports spread about the Brown University gunman, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins took to social media, pointing out the conflicting information and guiding the public to her network’s 9pm newscast.
While CNN is certainly not a flawless news source, her words seemed accurate to many. It remains one of the organizations where you can find grounded and largely trustworthy reporting – particularly during crises such as the one taking place in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.
An Uncertain State Amid a Business Struggle
But the news network, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a uncertain state as two massive media conglomerates compete for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Whatever the outcome, the destiny of CNN has become part of a high-stakes game of mergers and acquisitions, rather than as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.
“This represents another instance of the deep structural problems with roots in decades of policy decisions,” stated Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the Penn.
The debate about who will own Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a broader point.
“The narrative is crafted as a corporate drama with key players as the main characters, but there is scant discussion of the common good,” Pickard added.
The Complicating Element: Donald Trump
This situation is made more complex by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his chief “fake news” antagonist.
Think back to the cries of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his administration’s punitive suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in White House briefings.
Trump now claims that the network requires new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will protect him from criticism and scrutiny. That is one reason why he appears to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.
There is a basis to prefer that suitor more. For one thing, it is controlled 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 conservative Bari Weiss, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that venerable news network.
An Outcome of More Uncertainty
It is important to note, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a independent unit. This might be a relief to many at the network, but it’s hardly a guarantee of stability. That setup could set up CNN for a future sale. It never ends.
In the view of Timothy Wu, much of this is against the law, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that anti-trust laws should block both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be detrimental to the country, and both should be contested by anti-trust authorities,” Wu recently wrote.
The Core Problem and a Way Ahead
No matter the outcome with this particular battle, the underlying crisis remains.
“The present media landscape is a very structure that undermines democracy, but we ought not succumb to learned helplessness,” Pickard noted. Policy decisions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this hyper-commercialized monster, and different policy decisions can address it.
Can reform occur in an era where the top communications regulator 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 bolster independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, finance public media, and outlaw the consolidation of media power in very few hands are achievable – they are necessary for a functioning democracy.
Regarding media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations including CNN shouldn’t be tools in the latest acquisition battle.
