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On Thursday evening, as rumors swirled about a shooting at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins took to social media, highlighting the uncertainty and guiding the public to her channel's 9pm newscast.

Even though it is by no means a flawless news source, her message rang true to many. It remains one of the organizations where you can find fact-based and generally dependable reporting – notably during crises like the one developing near a New Hampshire storage facility.

An Uncertain State Amid a Business Struggle

But the news network, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a uncertain situation as two giant media corporations vie for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.

No matter the result, the destiny of CNN has turned into a high-risk game of mergers and acquisitions, instead of as a question of what serves the news-consuming public.

“Here is one more case of the fundamental flaws with origins in decades of policy decisions,” stated Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the Penn.

The conjecture about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – misses a broader point.

“It is often framed as a financial tale with key players as the protagonists, but there is very little discussion of the common good,” Pickard said.

The Complicating Factor: Political Influence

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

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

Trump now asserts that the network requires new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will shield him from negative coverage and examination. That is a factor in why he seems to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.

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

An Outcome of Further Uncertainty

Notably, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a independent unit. Such a move could be a relief to many at the network, but it’s not exactly a safe harbor. That arrangement could position CNN for yet another acquisition. It never ends.

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

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

The Fundamental Challenge and a Path Forward

Whatever happens regarding CNN, the larger issue remains.

“The present media landscape is a very anti-democratic system, but we must resist learned helplessness,” Pickard emphasized. Policy decisions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this profit-obsessed monster, and revised policy decisions can fix it.

Will that happen in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Reform is highly improbable now, but that should not imply it will never happen.

Policies that strengthen independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, finance public media, and prevent the consolidation of media power in too few hands are within reach – they are essential for a functioning democracy.

Regarding media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations including CNN cannot be pawns in the latest corporate chess match.