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This past Thursday night, as rumors swirled regarding the Brown University gunman, the network's Kaitlan Collins used social media, pointing out the conflicting information and directing people to her network’s 9pm newscast.

Although the network is hardly a perfect news source, her statement seemed accurate for a lot of people. It is one of the broadcasters where there exists reality-based and mostly trustworthy reporting – particularly during crises such as the one taking place near a New Hampshire storage facility.

An Uncertain Position Amid a Business Battle

However the news network, now middle-aged, finds itself in a precarious position as two giant media conglomerates compete for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.

No matter the result, the fate of CNN has been drawn into a high-stakes game of corporate ownership, not as a question of what serves the information-seeking public.

“This is yet another example of the deep structural problems with origins in decades of governmental choices,” noted Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the Penn.

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

“The narrative is crafted as a corporate drama with influential figures as the main characters, but there is scant discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard added.

The Additional Factor: Donald Trump

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

Recall the cries of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his team's disciplinary suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his clashes with Collins in press briefings.

Trump now says that CNN needs new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will insulate him from negative coverage and examination. That is one reason why he appears to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.

He has grounds to favor that company more. For one thing, it is led 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 appointed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that storied news network.

An Outcome of Further Uncertainty

Notably, if Netflix wins, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a standalone company. Such a move could be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s not exactly a guarantee of stability. That setup could position CNN for another sale. It never ends.

In the view of Timothy Wu, a lot of this is illegal, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance stated that competition laws should block both deals.

“Either merger would be bad for the country, and both should be challenged by the government,” Wu recently wrote.

The Fundamental Challenge and a Path Forward

Regardless of the resolution regarding CNN, the bigger problem endures.

“Our current system is a very anti-democratic system, but we ought not succumb to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard noted. Policy decisions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this profit-obsessed monster, and new policy decisions can tackle it.

Can reform occur in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair will not confirm that the agency is independent? Change is a distant prospect now, but that is not to say it will never happen.

Policies that bolster independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, fund public media, and prohibit the accumulation 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, larger is not superior. And news organizations like CNN must not be pieces in the most recent corporate chess match.