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On Thursday evening, as rumors swirled concerning the Brown University gunman, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, pointing out the conflicting information and guiding the public to her channel's 9pm newscast.

Even though the network is hardly a flawless news source, her statement resonated for a lot of people. It is one of the outlets where there exists grounded and mostly dependable reporting – particularly during crises like the one unfolding near a New Hampshire storage facility.

An Uncertain State During a High-Stakes Battle

But CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a vulnerable state as two giant media conglomerates compete for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.

Whatever the outcome, the fate of CNN has been drawn into a major game of business acquisition, not as a question of what benefits the news-consuming public.

“Here is one more case of the deep structural problems with origins in decades of policy decisions,” stated Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the University of Pennsylvania.

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

“The narrative is crafted as a financial tale with influential figures as the central actors, but there is very little discussion of the common good,” Pickard explained.

The Additional Factor: Donald Trump

The CNN scenario is made more complex by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has frequently denounced as perhaps his chief “fake news” antagonist.

Think back to the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at his rallies, his team's disciplinary suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in press briefings.

Trump now claims that the network requires new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will shield him from negative coverage and examination. That is part of why he seems to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.

Trump has reason to favor that bidder more. For one thing, it is run 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 right-leaning Bari Weiss, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that venerable news network.

A Future of Further Turmoil

Significantly, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a standalone company. This might be a relief to many at the network, but it’s not exactly a guarantee of stability. That setup could pave the way for CNN for yet another acquisition. The cycle continues.

In the view of Timothy Wu, much of this is illegal, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance recently argued that anti-trust laws should block both deals.

“Each proposed deal would be bad for the country, and both should be challenged by anti-trust authorities,” Wu recently wrote.

The Fundamental Issue and a Potential Solution

Whatever happens regarding CNN, the larger issue persists.

“Our current system is a highly system hostile to democracy, but we shouldn’t give in to learned helplessness,” Pickard emphasized. Policy decisions – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this overly commercial monster, and different policy decisions can fix it.

Will that happen in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Reform is very unlikely now, but that doesn’t mean it will be impossible forever.

Initiatives that support independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, finance public media, and outlaw the concentration of media power in very few hands are within reach – they are necessary for a robust democracy.

Regarding media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations including CNN cannot be pieces in the latest merger game.