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On Thursday evening, while unconfirmed reports spread regarding an incident at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins took to social media, noting the confusion and directing people to her channel's 9pm newscast.

Although CNN is certainly not a perfect news source, her words resonated to many. It stands as one of the outlets where one can locate fact-based and largely reliable reporting – particularly during breaking news situations such as the one developing in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.

A Vulnerable Situation Amid a Corporate Tug-of-War

But CNN, now 45 years old, finds itself in a precarious situation as two massive media conglomerates battle over ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.

Regardless of who wins, the future of CNN has turned into a major game of mergers and acquisitions, rather than as a question of what helps the information-seeking public.

“This is yet another example of the profound systemic issues with origins in many years of governmental choices,” said Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a academic specializing in media policy at the Penn.

The debate about which company will control Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – fails to grasp a broader point.

“The narrative is crafted as a corporate drama with key players as the central actors, but there is scant discussion of the public interest,” Pickard added.

A Further Element: The Former President

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

Remember the chants of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his administration's retaliatory revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in White House briefings.

Trump now claims that CNN needs new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will protect him from negative coverage and examination. That is part of why he appears to support 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 ally of Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.

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

An Outcome of More Instability

It is important to note, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a separate entity. That would be a relief to many at the network, but it’s hardly a guarantee of stability. That setup could position CNN for another sale. It never ends.

In the view of Timothy Wu, much of this is against the law, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance stated that anti-trust laws should prohibit both deals.

“Either merger would be detrimental to the country, and both should be challenged by regulators,” Wu argued.

The Bigger Issue and a Way Ahead

Regardless of the resolution in this situation, the bigger problem persists.

“The present media landscape is a very system hostile to democracy, but we ought not succumb to learned helplessness,” Pickard noted. Government actions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this hyper-commercialized monster, and different policy decisions can fix it.

Will that happen in an era where the head of the FCC will not confirm that the agency is independent? Change is a distant prospect now, but that is not to say it will not happen in the future.

Measures that bolster independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, finance public media, and prevent the concentration of media power in a handful of hands are not only possible – they are essential for a healthy democracy.

When it comes to media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations such as CNN cannot be pawns in the latest acquisition battle.