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Late Thursday, as rumors swirled regarding a shooting at Brown University, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins took to social media, noting the confusion and directing people to her network’s 9pm newscast.

While the network is hardly a perfect news source, her statement resonated for numerous observers. It stands as one of the broadcasters where one can locate fact-based and generally dependable reporting – notably during fast-moving events like the one developing close to a New Hampshire storage facility.

An Uncertain Position During a Business Tug-of-War

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

Whatever the outcome, the fate of CNN has been drawn into a high-risk game of business acquisition, instead of as a question of what helps the information-seeking public.

“Here is one more case of the profound systemic issues with origins in many years of policy decisions,” said Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the Pennsylvania University.

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

“It gets presented as a corporate drama with key players as the protagonists, but there is very little discussion of the public interest,” Pickard said.

A Further Layer: Donald Trump

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

Remember the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his administration’s punitive suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in official meetings.

Trump now asserts that CNN needs new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will protect him from criticism and scrutiny. That is part of why he seems to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.

Trump has reason to favor that company more. For one thing, it is controlled by David Ellison, son of the Trump-friendly Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.

Paramount, parent of CBS News, also recently placed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that venerable news network.

An Outcome of Continued Uncertainty

Notably, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a independent unit. That would be a relief to many at the network, but it’s hardly a safe harbor. That arrangement could position CNN for yet another acquisition. There is no finish line.

If you ask Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance stated that anti-trust laws should prohibit both deals.

“Both acquisition attempts would be harmful to the country, and both should be contested by regulators,” Wu stated.

The Fundamental Problem and a Path Forward

Whatever happens regarding CNN, the larger issue persists.

“The present media landscape is a highly system hostile to democracy, but we must resist a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard emphasized. Government actions – dating back to 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 won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Overhaul is a distant prospect now, but that doesn’t mean it will never happen.

Measures that strengthen independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, subsidize public media, and outlaw the accumulation of media power in too few hands are achievable – they are vital for a healthy democracy.

In the world of media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations including CNN must not be tools in the newest acquisition battle.