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On Thursday evening, while unconfirmed reports spread about the Brown University gunman, the network's Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, pointing out the conflicting information and pointing viewers to her network’s 9pm newscast.

While it is by no means a impeccable news source, her message rang true for numerous observers. It remains one of the broadcasters where one can locate fact-based and largely reliable reporting – particularly during breaking news situations like the one developing close to a New Hampshire storage facility.

An Uncertain Position During a High-Stakes Tug-of-War

But CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a precarious situation as two massive media corporations vie for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.

Regardless of who wins, the destiny of CNN has been drawn into a major game of business acquisition, not as a question of what benefits the information-seeking public.

“Here is one more case of the profound systemic issues with origins in many years of policy decisions,” stated Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the Penn.

The conjecture about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a larger point.

“It gets presented as a financial tale with powerful individuals as the central actors, but there is very little discussion of the common good,” Pickard said.

The Complicating Factor: Donald Trump

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

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

Trump now says that CNN needs new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will protect him from criticism and scrutiny. That is one reason why he seems to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.

Trump has reason to favor that company more. For one thing, it is led by David Ellison, son of the Trump-friendly Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.

Paramount, parent of CBS News, also recently installed the conservative Bari Weiss, famous for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the top editor of that venerable news network.

An Outcome of Continued Turmoil

It is important to note, if Netflix prevails, 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 secure position. That setup could position CNN for a future sale. The cycle continues.

If you ask Timothy Wu, a lot of this is illegal, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that competition laws should block both deals.

“Both acquisition attempts would be detrimental to the country, and both should be opposed by the government,” Wu argued.

The Core Problem and a Path Forward

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

“Our current system is a profoundly system hostile to democracy, but we shouldn’t give in to learned helplessness,” Pickard emphasized. Regulatory choices – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this profit-obsessed monster, and revised policy decisions can tackle it.

Will that happen in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Change is very unlikely now, but that doesn’t mean it will never happen.

Policies that bolster independent news organizations, bolster local journalism, subsidize public media, and outlaw the concentration of media power in too few hands are within reach – they are vital for a healthy democracy.

When it comes to media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations such as CNN must not be pieces in the newest merger game.