This Power Struggle For the Cable News Network Highlights How Broken US Journalism Has Become.

Late Thursday, amid swirling speculation regarding the Brown University gunman, the network's Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, noting the confusion and pointing viewers to her channel's 9pm newscast.

Even though it is by no means a perfect news source, her statement rang true to many. It is one of the outlets where you can find grounded and largely reliable reporting – particularly during crises like the one unfolding near a New Hampshire storage facility.

An Uncertain Position Amid a Business Struggle

Yet CNN, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a uncertain state as two huge media empires battle over ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.

Whatever the outcome, the future of CNN has become part of a high-risk game of corporate ownership, instead of as a question of what helps the news-consuming public.

“Here is one more case of the profound systemic issues with origins in many years of governmental choices,” noted Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the Penn.

The speculation about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a more important point.

“It is often framed as a financial tale with key players as the main characters, but there is scant discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard explained.

The Complicating Element: Political Influence

The network's predicament is made more complex by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his main “fake news” antagonist.

Think back to the chants of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his team's disciplinary withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in press briefings.

Trump now asserts that the network requires new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will insulate him from criticism and scrutiny. That is a factor in why he appears to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.

Trump has reason to favor 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, parent of CBS News, also recently appointed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that historic news network.

An Outcome of More Uncertainty

Notably, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated 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 arrangement could set up CNN for another sale. It never ends.

According to Timothy Wu, a lot of this is illegal, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance recently argued that competition laws should prohibit both deals.

“Either merger would be detrimental to the country, and both should be challenged by anti-trust authorities,” Wu argued.

The Fundamental Problem and a Potential Solution

Whatever happens in this situation, the larger issue remains.

“What we have now is a highly system hostile to democracy, but we shouldn’t give in to learned helplessness,” Pickard emphasized. Regulatory choices – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this profit-obsessed monster, and revised policy decisions can address it.

Can reform occur in an era where the head of the FCC won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Change is highly improbable now, but that is not to say it will be impossible forever.

Initiatives that support independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, finance public media, and outlaw the consolidation of media power in a handful of hands are within reach – they are vital for a robust democracy.

When it comes to media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations including CNN shouldn’t be pawns in the latest merger game.