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Late Thursday, while unconfirmed reports spread about a shooting at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins took to 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 message rang true for numerous observers. It remains one of the organizations where one can locate fact-based and largely trustworthy reporting – especially during crises like the one unfolding near a New Hampshire storage facility.

A Precarious State During a Business Battle

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

Whatever the outcome, the fate of CNN has turned into a major game of business acquisition, instead of as a question of what helps the news-consuming public.

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

The debate about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – will it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – misses a broader point.

“The narrative is crafted as a corporate drama with influential figures as the central actors, but there is scant discussion of the common good,” Pickard said.

The Additional Element: Donald Trump

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

Think back to the chants of “CNN sucks!” at the president’s rallies, his team's disciplinary revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his tense exchanges with Collins in official meetings.

Trump now asserts that the network requires new ownership. This can be interpreted as ownership that will protect him from criticism and scrutiny. That is part of why he appears to favor Paramount Skydance, which has made a aggressive takeover attempt.

There is a basis to favor that suitor 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, parent of CBS News, also recently placed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that historic news network.

A Possibility of More Uncertainty

It is important to note, if Netflix is successful, CNN and other cable outlets would first be carved out into a separate entity. This might be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s not exactly a guarantee of stability. That arrangement could position CNN for a future sale. It never ends.

According to Timothy Wu, much of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance recently argued that competition laws should prohibit both deals.

“Either merger would be harmful to the country, and both should be contested by regulators,” Wu stated.

The Bigger Problem and a Way Ahead

Regardless of the resolution regarding CNN, the underlying crisis endures.

“The present media landscape is a profoundly structure that undermines democracy, but we must resist a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard emphasized. Government actions – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this hyper-commercialized monster, and revised policy decisions can address it.

Can reform occur in an era where the top communications regulator refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Overhaul is a distant prospect now, but that should not imply it will not happen in the future.

Policies that bolster independent news organizations, aid local journalism, subsidize public media, and prevent the consolidation of media power in too few hands are achievable – they are vital for a healthy democracy.

In the world of media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations like CNN must not be pawns in the most recent corporate chess match.