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On Thursday evening, as rumors swirled concerning a shooting at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins used social media, pointing out the conflicting information and guiding the public to her network’s 9pm newscast.

While CNN is certainly not a flawless news source, her message resonated for a lot of people. It stands as one of the broadcasters where you can find grounded and mostly trustworthy reporting – notably during crises such as the one taking place close to a New Hampshire storage facility.

A Precarious Position Amid a Business Tug-of-War

Yet CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a precarious position as two giant media conglomerates vie for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.

Regardless of who wins, the fate of CNN has become part of a high-risk game of mergers and acquisitions, not as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.

“This is yet another example of the profound systemic issues with origins in many years of governmental choices,” noted Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the Pennsylvania University.

The speculation about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a larger point.

“It is often framed as a business story with influential figures as the protagonists, but there is scant discussion of the public interest,” Pickard explained.

The Additional Element: Political Influence

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

Remember the chants of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his team's disciplinary withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in White House briefings.

Trump now claims that CNN needs new ownership. You can read that as 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 hostile bid.

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

Paramount, owner of CBS News, also recently installed the conservative Bari Weiss, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that historic news network.

An Outcome of More Uncertainty

It is important to note, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a separate entity. This might be a relief to many at the network, but it’s far from a secure position. That arrangement could set up CNN for a future sale. The cycle continues.

In the view of Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance stated that anti-trust laws should prohibit both deals.

“Both acquisition attempts would be detrimental to the country, and both should be contested by regulators,” Wu recently wrote.

The Fundamental Challenge and a Potential Solution

No matter the outcome with this particular battle, the underlying crisis persists.

“What we have now is a very structure that undermines democracy, but we ought not succumb to the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard noted. Policy decisions – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this hyper-commercialized monster, and new policy decisions can fix it.

Is this likely 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 should not imply it will never happen.

Initiatives that strengthen independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, fund public media, and prevent the consolidation of media power in a handful of hands are within reach – they are necessary for a robust democracy.

Regarding media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations including CNN cannot be pieces in the most recent acquisition battle.