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Late Thursday, as rumors swirled about a shooting at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, pointing out the conflicting information and pointing viewers to her channel's 9pm newscast.

While the network is hardly a perfect news source, her statement resonated to many. It is one of the organizations where you can find grounded and mostly dependable reporting – notably during crises such as the one unfolding in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.

A Precarious State Amid a High-Stakes Struggle

However CNN, now middle-aged, finds itself in a vulnerable situation as two huge media empires vie for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.

Whatever the outcome, the future of CNN has turned into a high-stakes game of business acquisition, rather than as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.

“Here is one more case of the profound systemic issues with roots in decades of regulatory actions,” noted Victor Pickard, author 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.

“It gets presented as a business story with powerful individuals as the protagonists, but there is hardly any discussion of the public interest,” Pickard added.

A Further Layer: Political Influence

The CNN scenario is made more complex by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his primary “fake news” foe.

Think back to the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his administration's retaliatory suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in official meetings.

Trump now says that CNN needs new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will insulate him from criticism and scrutiny. That is part of why he appears to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.

There is a basis to favor 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.

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

A Possibility of Further Instability

Notably, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a independent unit. That would be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s hardly a secure position. That structure could pave the way for CNN for another sale. The cycle continues.

If you ask Timothy Wu, a lot of this is against the law, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance stated that competition laws should block both deals.

“Each proposed deal would be harmful to the country, and both should be contested by regulators,” Wu argued.

The Fundamental Issue and a Way Ahead

Regardless of the resolution with this particular battle, the underlying crisis persists.

“Our current system is a highly structure that undermines democracy, but we ought not succumb to learned helplessness,” Pickard noted. Regulatory choices – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this overly commercial monster, and new policy decisions can address it.

Is this likely in an era where the head of the FCC will not confirm that the agency is independent? Reform is highly improbable now, but that should not imply it will not happen in the future.

Measures that support independent news organizations, aid local journalism, subsidize public media, and outlaw the concentration of media power in a handful of hands are achievable – they are necessary for a healthy democracy.

When it comes to media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations including CNN must not be tools in the newest corporate chess match.