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On Thursday evening, amid swirling speculation about a shooting at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, highlighting the uncertainty and guiding the public to her network’s 9pm newscast.

Even though it is by no means a flawless news source, her statement resonated for a lot of people. It stands as one of the broadcasters where there exists fact-based and largely dependable reporting – particularly during breaking news situations like the one unfolding close to a New Hampshire storage facility.

A Precarious Situation Amid a High-Stakes Tug-of-War

But CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a vulnerable state as two giant media conglomerates battle over ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.

Whatever the outcome, the future of CNN has turned into a major game of mergers and acquisitions, instead of as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.

“This is yet another example of the fundamental flaws with origins in many years of policy decisions,” stated Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the Penn.

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

“The narrative is crafted as a financial tale with powerful individuals as the central actors, but there is scant discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard said.

The Additional Layer: The Former President

The CNN scenario is further muddied by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his chief “fake news” antagonist.

Recall the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at his rallies, his administration's retaliatory withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in press briefings.

Trump now says that CNN needs new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will insulate him from negative coverage and examination. That is part of why he appears to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.

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

The company, parent of CBS News, also recently placed the conservative Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that venerable news network.

A Future of Continued Instability

It is important to note, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a independent unit. Such a move could be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s far from a secure position. That structure could set up CNN for a future sale. It never ends.

If you ask Timothy Wu, a lot of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that competition laws should block both deals.

“Each proposed deal would be detrimental to the country, and both should be challenged by anti-trust authorities,” Wu stated.

The Fundamental Problem and a Potential Solution

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

“What we have now is a very structure that undermines democracy, but we must resist the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard emphasized. Regulatory choices – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this profit-obsessed monster, and different policy decisions can fix it.

Will that happen in an era where the top communications regulator refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Change is very unlikely now, but that doesn’t mean it will never happen.

Measures that bolster independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, finance public media, and prevent the concentration of media power in a handful of hands are not only possible – they are essential for a robust democracy.

In the world of media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations including CNN must not be pieces in the latest acquisition battle.