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This past Thursday night, while unconfirmed reports spread regarding a shooting at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, pointing out the conflicting information and directing people to her network’s 9pm newscast.

While it is by no means a perfect news source, her words seemed accurate for numerous observers. It remains one of the organizations where you can find grounded and generally reliable reporting – particularly during fast-moving events like the one unfolding close to a New Hampshire storage facility.

A Precarious Situation During a Corporate Battle

However CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a uncertain situation as two huge media empires vie for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.

Regardless of who wins, the future of CNN has become part of a high-risk game of business acquisition, not as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.

“This represents another instance of the fundamental flaws with origins in decades of policy decisions,” noted Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the Pennsylvania University.

The speculation about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a more important point.

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

The Additional Factor: Political Influence

This situation is complicated by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his chief “fake news” antagonist.

Recall the shouts 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 official meetings.

Trump now claims that CNN needs new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will protect him from journalistic oversight. That is part of why he appears to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.

Trump has reason to favor that bidder 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 installed the conservative Bari Weiss, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that historic news network.

A Possibility of More Turmoil

Significantly, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a independent unit. This might be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s hardly a guarantee of stability. That arrangement could set up CNN for a future sale. There is no finish line.

According to Timothy Wu, a lot of this is against the law, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that competition laws should block both deals.

“Either merger would be harmful to the country, and both should be opposed by regulators,” Wu recently wrote.

The Core Problem and a Path Forward

Whatever happens with this particular battle, the underlying crisis remains.

“Our current system is a highly system hostile to democracy, but we ought not succumb to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard emphasized. Policy decisions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this profit-obsessed monster, and new policy decisions can fix it.

Will that happen in an era where the head of the FCC won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Change is very unlikely now, but that doesn’t mean it will not happen in the future.

Policies that support independent news organizations, aid local journalism, fund public media, and prevent the accumulation of media power in too few hands are within reach – they are vital for a functioning democracy.

Regarding media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations including CNN must not be tools in the most recent corporate chess match.