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Late Thursday, as rumors swirled regarding the Brown University gunman, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins used social media, highlighting the uncertainty and pointing viewers to her network’s 9pm newscast.

While it is by no means a perfect news source, her statement resonated for numerous observers. It stands as one of the organizations where one can locate fact-based and generally dependable reporting – particularly during fast-moving events such as the one unfolding close to a New Hampshire storage facility.

A Precarious State During a Corporate Struggle

However the news network, now 45 years old, finds itself in a uncertain situation as two huge media corporations battle over ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.

Whatever the outcome, the destiny of CNN has been drawn into a high-stakes game of mergers and acquisitions, not as a question of what helps the news-consuming public.

“This represents another instance of the profound systemic issues with origins in many years of policy decisions,” stated Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the University of Pennsylvania.

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

“It gets presented as a financial tale with influential figures as the central actors, but there is scant discussion of the public interest,” Pickard added.

A Further Element: The Former President

The CNN scenario is made more complex by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his primary “fake news” foe.

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

Trump now claims that CNN needs new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will shield him from criticism and scrutiny. That is part of why he seems to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.

There is a basis to prefer that suitor more. For one thing, it is run 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, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that historic news network.

An Outcome of Further Instability

Significantly, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a separate entity. That would be a relief to many at the network, but it’s not exactly a secure position. That structure could set up CNN for yet another acquisition. There is no finish line.

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

“Each proposed deal would be harmful to the country, and both should be contested by anti-trust authorities,” Wu recently wrote.

The Fundamental Challenge and a Potential Solution

No matter the outcome regarding CNN, the bigger problem remains.

“The present media landscape is a highly system hostile to democracy, but we must resist learned helplessness,” Pickard said. Government actions – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this profit-obsessed monster, and different policy decisions can tackle it.

Can reform occur in an era where the top communications regulator will not confirm that the agency is independent? Reform is very unlikely now, but that is not to say it will never happen.

Initiatives that strengthen independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, subsidize public media, and outlaw the accumulation of media power in too few hands are achievable – they are essential for a robust democracy.

In the world of media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations like CNN shouldn’t be pieces in the latest merger game.