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On Thursday evening, while unconfirmed reports spread about an incident at Brown University, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, noting the confusion and directing people to her channel's 9pm newscast.

Although CNN is certainly not a flawless news source, her statement rang true to many. It remains one of the outlets where there exists reality-based and mostly dependable reporting – especially during breaking news situations such as the one unfolding in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.

An Uncertain State Amid a Business Struggle

However the news network, now middle-aged, finds itself in a uncertain position as two massive media corporations vie for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.

Regardless of who wins, the fate of CNN has turned into a high-risk game of mergers and acquisitions, not as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.

“This represents another instance of the deep structural problems with origins in many years of governmental choices,” stated Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the Penn.

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

“It gets presented as a financial tale with powerful individuals as the protagonists, but there is very little discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard added.

The Additional Factor: Political Influence

The CNN scenario is complicated by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his primary “fake news” adversary.

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

Trump now claims that the network requires new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will protect him from criticism and scrutiny. That is a factor in why he appears to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.

He has grounds to favor that company more. For one thing, it is run by David Ellison, son of the ally of Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.

Paramount, parent of CBS News, also recently appointed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that historic news network.

A Future of More Uncertainty

It is important to note, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a separate entity. This might be a relief to many at the network, but it’s far from a safe harbor. That setup could pave the way for CNN for another sale. It never ends.

If you ask Timothy Wu, a great deal of this is against the law, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that competition laws should prohibit both deals.

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

The Bigger Issue and a Potential Solution

Regardless of the resolution in this situation, the bigger problem endures.

“What we have now is a highly anti-democratic system, but we ought not succumb to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard said. Regulatory choices – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this hyper-commercialized monster, and different policy decisions can tackle it.

Can reform occur in an era where the head of the FCC won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Overhaul is highly improbable now, but that doesn’t mean it will not happen in the future.

Policies that bolster independent news organizations, aid local journalism, fund public media, and prevent the accumulation of media power in very few hands are not only possible – they are necessary for a healthy democracy.

When it comes to media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations like CNN cannot be pawns in the most recent corporate chess match.