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Late Thursday, as rumors swirled regarding the Brown University gunman, the network's Kaitlan Collins took to social media, noting the confusion and guiding the public to her network’s 9pm newscast.

While CNN is certainly not a flawless news source, her words resonated for a lot of people. It stands as one of the broadcasters where you can find fact-based and mostly reliable reporting – particularly during fast-moving events like the one unfolding close to a New Hampshire storage facility.

A Vulnerable State Amid a Business Tug-of-War

Yet CNN, now middle-aged, finds itself in a vulnerable position as two massive media empires battle over ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.

Regardless of who wins, the destiny of CNN has been drawn into a major game of corporate ownership, instead of as a question of what helps the news-consuming public.

“Here is one more case of the deep structural problems with roots in many years of governmental choices,” noted Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the University of Pennsylvania.

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

“It gets presented as a business story with powerful individuals as the central actors, but there is very little discussion of the public interest,” Pickard said.

A Further Factor: Political Influence

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

Recall the chants of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his team's disciplinary withdrawal of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in press briefings.

Trump now says that the network requires new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will insulate him from journalistic oversight. That is one reason why he seems to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.

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

The company, parent of CBS News, also recently appointed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that storied news network.

An Outcome of Further Turmoil

It is important to note, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a independent unit. This might be a relief to many at the network, but it’s not exactly a safe harbor. That structure could position CNN for yet another acquisition. It never ends.

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

“Both acquisition attempts would be harmful to the country, and both should be contested by the government,” Wu recently wrote.

The Fundamental Challenge and a Path Forward

Regardless of the resolution in this situation, the underlying crisis remains.

“Our current system is a highly anti-democratic system, but we ought not succumb to learned helplessness,” Pickard noted. Regulatory choices – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this profit-obsessed monster, and new policy decisions can fix it.

Can reform occur in an era where the top communications regulator won’t even affirm that the agency is independent? Reform is a distant prospect now, but that doesn’t mean it will be impossible forever.

Policies that bolster independent news organizations, aid local journalism, subsidize public media, and prohibit the accumulation of media power in very few hands are within reach – they are essential for a healthy democracy.

When it comes to media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations such as CNN cannot be tools in the latest acquisition battle.