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Late Thursday, as rumors swirled concerning an incident at Brown University, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins took to social media, noting the confusion and pointing viewers to her channel's 9pm newscast.

Even though it is by no means a impeccable news source, her words rang true to many. It is one of the organizations where you can find reality-based and generally trustworthy reporting – especially during crises like the one developing close to a New Hampshire storage facility.

An Uncertain State During a Corporate Battle

However the news network, now 45 years old, finds itself in a precarious position as two massive media empires battle over ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.

Whatever the outcome, the future of CNN has turned into a high-risk game of corporate ownership, rather than as a question of what helps the news-consuming public.

“This is yet another example of the profound systemic issues with origins in decades of regulatory actions,” said Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a media policy professor at the University of Pennsylvania.

The speculation about the future owner of Warner Bros Discovery – is it going to be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – overlooks a broader point.

“It gets presented as a corporate drama with key players as the central actors, but there is scant discussion of the public interest,” Pickard explained.

The Complicating Layer: Donald Trump

This situation is complicated by Donald Trump’s longstanding stance about a network he has long portrayed as perhaps his main “fake news” adversary.

Think back to the shouts of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his administration's retaliatory suspension of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in White House briefings.

Trump now says that the network requires new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will shield him from negative coverage and examination. That is a factor in why he seems to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.

There is a basis to favor that bidder 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.

Paramount, parent of CBS News, also recently placed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the editor-in-chief of that storied news network.

A Future of More Turmoil

It is important to note, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a independent unit. Such a move could be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s hardly a guarantee of stability. That arrangement could set up CNN for a future sale. The cycle continues.

If you ask Timothy Wu, much of this is a violation of antitrust statutes, anyway. The well-known analyst of big tech’s dominance wrote recently that anti-trust laws should disallow both deals.

“Each proposed deal would be bad for the country, and both should be opposed by the government,” Wu stated.

The Core Issue and a Way Ahead

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

“What we have now is a very anti-democratic system, but we shouldn’t give in to the belief that change is impossible,” Pickard said. Policy decisions – dating back to the 1930s and 1940s – helped to create this hyper-commercialized monster, and revised policy decisions can fix 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 should not imply it will be impossible forever.

Initiatives that bolster independent news organizations, aid local journalism, subsidize public media, and prevent the consolidation of media power in a handful of hands are within reach – they are essential for a functioning democracy.

In the world of media ownership, larger is not superior. And news organizations including CNN cannot be pieces in the most recent corporate chess match.