This Corporate Battle For CNN Highlights The Extent to Which Broken American Media Has Become.

On Thursday evening, as rumors swirled concerning a shooting at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, highlighting the uncertainty and directing people to her channel's 9pm newscast.

Although it is by no means a impeccable news source, her words resonated for numerous observers. It stands as one of the outlets where there exists fact-based and mostly trustworthy reporting – particularly during fast-moving events such as the one unfolding near a New Hampshire storage facility.

An Uncertain State During a Corporate Struggle

However the news network, now 45 years old, finds itself in a precarious state as two giant media empires vie for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.

Regardless of who wins, the fate of CNN has become part of a high-risk game of business acquisition, rather than as a question of what serves the information-seeking public.

“This is yet another example of the deep structural problems with roots in decades of policy decisions,” stated Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the University of Pennsylvania.

The debate about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – misses a broader point.

“The narrative is crafted as a corporate drama with key players as the protagonists, but there is scant discussion of the public interest,” Pickard said.

The Complicating Element: Donald Trump

This situation is made more complex by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his chief “fake news” foe.

Recall the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his team's disciplinary revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in press briefings.

Trump now says that the network requires new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will protect him from journalistic oversight. That is part of why he appears to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.

He has grounds to prefer that suitor more. For one thing, it is controlled by David Ellison, son of the ally of Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.

Paramount, parent of CBS News, also recently installed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that venerable news network.

A Future of Further Turmoil

It is important to note, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a standalone company. Such a move could be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s far from a safe harbor. That arrangement could pave the way for CNN for a future sale. It never ends.

If you ask Timothy Wu, a lot of this is against the law, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance stated that anti-trust laws should block both deals.

“Either merger would be detrimental to the country, and both should be challenged by regulators,” Wu stated.

The Bigger Challenge and a Way Ahead

No matter the outcome with this particular battle, the bigger problem remains.

“What we have now is a very anti-democratic system, but we ought not succumb to the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard emphasized. Policy decisions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this profit-obsessed monster, and different policy decisions can address it.

Is this likely in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair will not confirm that the agency is independent? Change is very unlikely now, but that should not imply it will never happen.

Initiatives that support independent news organizations, aid local journalism, finance public media, and prohibit the consolidation of media power in very few hands are not only possible – they are vital for a functioning democracy.

Regarding media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations such as CNN must not be pieces in the latest acquisition battle.