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On Thursday evening, amid swirling speculation about 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.

Even though CNN is certainly not a perfect news source, her message seemed accurate for a lot of people. It stands as one of the organizations where there exists grounded and largely dependable reporting – particularly during crises such as the one unfolding near a New Hampshire storage facility.

A Vulnerable State Amid a Corporate Tug-of-War

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

No matter the result, the future of CNN has been drawn into a major game of business acquisition, instead of as a question of what helps the information-seeking public.

“This is yet another example of the profound systemic issues with origins in decades of governmental choices,” noted Victor Pickard, writer of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the University of Pennsylvania.

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

“It gets presented as a corporate drama with key players as the main characters, but there is hardly any discussion of the common good,” Pickard explained.

The Additional Element: The Former President

The network's predicament is complicated by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his main “fake news” antagonist.

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

Trump now claims that the network requires new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will shield him from criticism and scrutiny. That is one reason why he appears to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.

Trump has reason to prefer 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 conservative Bari Weiss, noted for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that venerable news network.

A Possibility of Further Instability

Significantly, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a standalone company. This might be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s hardly a safe harbor. That setup could position CNN for another sale. There is no finish line.

According to Timothy Wu, a lot of this is against the law, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that competition laws should disallow both deals.

“Each proposed deal would be harmful to the country, and both should be challenged by the government,” Wu stated.

The Fundamental Problem and a Path Forward

No matter the outcome with this particular battle, the larger issue remains.

“Our current system is a highly structure that undermines democracy, but we ought not succumb to learned helplessness,” Pickard emphasized. Policy decisions – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this profit-obsessed monster, and revised 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 a distant prospect now, but that doesn’t mean it will never happen.

Policies that strengthen independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, subsidize public media, and prevent the accumulation of media power in very few hands are within reach – they are vital for a functioning democracy.

In the world of media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations including CNN shouldn’t be pawns in the most recent merger game.