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On Thursday evening, as rumors swirled about an incident at Brown University, the network's Kaitlan Collins used social media, noting the confusion and pointing viewers to her channel's 9pm newscast.

Although CNN is certainly not a perfect news source, her message rang true for numerous observers. It remains one of the broadcasters where there exists reality-based and mostly trustworthy reporting – notably during crises such as the one developing near a New Hampshire storage facility.

An Uncertain Position During a Corporate Tug-of-War

But CNN, now middle-aged, finds itself in a vulnerable state as two huge media empires compete for ownership of its parent company, Warner Bros Discovery.

Regardless of who wins, the fate of CNN has become part of a high-stakes game of mergers and acquisitions, not as a question of what serves the news-consuming public.

“This represents another instance of the deep structural problems with origins in decades of governmental choices,” noted Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the Pennsylvania University.

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

“It gets presented as a financial tale with key players as the central actors, but there is hardly any discussion of the public interest,” Pickard said.

The Additional Factor: The Former President

The network's predicament is further muddied by Donald Trump’s opinions about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his primary “fake news” adversary.

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

Trump now says that CNN needs new ownership. Many see this as a desire for ownership that will protect him from journalistic oversight. That is a factor in why he appears to come down on the side of Paramount Skydance, which has made a hostile bid.

There is a basis to like that company more. For one thing, it is run by David Ellison, son of the Trump-friendly Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.

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

A Future of More Uncertainty

Notably, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be separated into a independent unit. That would be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s not exactly a guarantee of stability. That setup could position CNN for yet another acquisition. It never ends.

According to Timothy Wu, a lot of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The prominent critic of big tech’s dominance stated that anti-trust laws should block both deals.

“Each proposed deal would be bad for the country, and both should be opposed by regulators,” Wu recently wrote.

The Bigger Issue and a Way Ahead

No matter the outcome regarding CNN, the larger issue remains.

“The present media landscape is a very anti-democratic system, but we must resist the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard emphasized. Government actions – from the 1930s and 1940s – helped to foster this hyper-commercialized monster, and different policy decisions can address it.

Is this likely in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Change is highly improbable now, but that is not to say it will be impossible forever.

Measures that strengthen independent news organizations, reinforce local journalism, finance public media, and prevent the consolidation of media power in very few hands are not only possible – they are vital for a robust democracy.

In the world of media ownership, size does not equal quality. And news organizations such as CNN cannot be pawns in the newest merger game.