The Power Struggle For CNN Highlights How Flawed American Media Now Is.

On Thursday evening, while unconfirmed reports spread about the Brown University gunman, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, highlighting the uncertainty and pointing viewers to her channel's 9pm newscast.

Even though CNN is certainly not a perfect news source, her message rang true for numerous observers. It remains one of the outlets where you can find reality-based and largely dependable reporting – especially during breaking news situations such as the one taking place close to a New Hampshire storage facility.

A Precarious State During a Corporate Battle

However the news network, now middle-aged, finds itself in a precarious situation as two giant media empires battle over ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.

Whatever the outcome, the future of CNN has turned into a high-stakes game of corporate ownership, rather than as a question of what helps the news-consuming public.

“Here is one more case of the fundamental flaws with roots in decades of regulatory actions,” said Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the University of Pennsylvania.

The debate about who will own Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a larger point.

“The narrative is crafted as a financial tale with powerful individuals as the central actors, but there is very little discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard said.

The Complicating Element: The Former President

This situation is complicated by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his main “fake news” antagonist.

Remember the cries of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his administration's retaliatory revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in official meetings.

Trump now claims that CNN needs new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will shield him from journalistic oversight. That is part of why he appears to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.

There is a basis to favor that bidder more. For one thing, it is controlled by David Ellison, son of the Trump-friendly Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.

The company, parent of CBS News, also recently installed the conservative Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that storied news network.

An Outcome of Further Turmoil

Notably, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a separate entity. Such a move could be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s far from a secure position. That setup could position CNN for yet another acquisition. The cycle continues.

In the view of Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is against the law, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance recently argued that anti-trust laws should block both deals.

“Both acquisition attempts would be harmful to the country, and both should be contested by regulators,” Wu argued.

The Bigger Issue and a Potential Solution

No matter the outcome regarding CNN, the bigger problem persists.

“What we have now is a very anti-democratic system, but we must resist learned helplessness,” Pickard emphasized. Government actions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this profit-obsessed monster, and new policy decisions can tackle it.

Can reform occur in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Change is a distant prospect now, but that is not to say it will be impossible forever.

Measures that strengthen independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, fund public media, and prohibit the concentration of media power in too few hands are achievable – they are necessary for a healthy democracy.

When it comes to media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations such as CNN must not be pieces in the most recent corporate chess match.