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On Thursday evening, while unconfirmed reports spread concerning an incident at Brown University, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins used social media, noting the confusion and guiding the public to her network’s 9pm newscast.

While the network is hardly a impeccable news source, her statement resonated for a lot of people. It is one of the organizations where one can locate grounded and generally trustworthy reporting – notably during fast-moving events like the one unfolding close to a New Hampshire storage facility.

A Vulnerable Position Amid a Business Battle

But the news network, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a vulnerable situation as two massive media empires compete for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.

Whatever the outcome, the destiny of CNN has turned into a high-risk game of business acquisition, rather than as a question of what serves the news-consuming public.

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

The speculation about who will own Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a broader point.

“It gets presented as a corporate drama with influential figures as the main characters, but there is scant discussion of the public interest,” Pickard added.

A Further Layer: Political Influence

The network's predicament is further muddied by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his main “fake news” antagonist.

Remember the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his administration’s punitive suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in press briefings.

Trump now asserts that CNN needs new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will shield him from negative coverage and examination. That is part of why he appears to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.

There is a basis 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 placed the conservative Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that venerable news network.

An Outcome of Continued Uncertainty

Notably, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a separate entity. This might be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s far from a guarantee of stability. That structure could position CNN for another sale. The cycle continues.

If you ask Timothy Wu, a lot 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 bad for the country, and both should be challenged by regulators,” Wu argued.

The Core Issue and a Path Forward

No matter the outcome in this situation, the bigger problem endures.

“What we have now is a very system hostile to democracy, but we shouldn’t give in to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard emphasized. Policy decisions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this profit-obsessed monster, and revised policy decisions can address it.

Will that happen in an era where the top communications regulator refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Change is highly improbable now, but that doesn’t mean it will not happen in the future.

Measures that support independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, finance public media, and prevent the consolidation of media power in very few hands are not only possible – they are vital for a robust democracy.

Regarding media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations including CNN must not be pawns in the newest merger game.