Trump settlement with CBS sparks viewer outrage
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CBS and Paramount are set to pay a humiliating settlement to Donald Trump that goes beyond millions in cash payouts and could flood their liberal audiences with conservative content. The president is set to get $16million from CBS and Paramount straight away to reimburse him for legal fees for what he claims is misleading editing to an interview before the election with rival Kamala Harris.
The remaining money will help fund a future presidential library and serve some of Trump's favorite charities, at his discretion. However, the president has also won more than $15million more in earned media for both himself and the conservative movement that could have left-leaning viewers seeing red. The president will receive that much in advertising, public service announcements and other content that backs conservative causes, Fox News Digital reports.
Further, CBS will institute a new 'Trump rule' in its editorial standards that forces them to quickly put out unedited transcripts of any interviews with presidential candidates. 'With this record settlement, President Donald J. Trump delivers another win for the American people as he, once again, holds the Fake News media accountable for their wrongdoing and deceit,' a spokesperson for Trump's legal team said. 'CBS and Paramount Global realized the strength of this historic case and had no choice but to settle. President Trump will always ensure that no one gets away with lying to the American People as he continues on his singular mission to Make America Great Again.'
The suit, filed last October, accuses Paramount, CBS and its flagship show 60 Minutes of deceptively editing an interview with then–Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris just weeks before the election. Trump alleges the footage was manipulated to 'tip the scales' in Harris's favor. Lawyers for Trump and CBS parent company Paramount have been 'engaged in good faith, advanced, settlement negotiations,' according to court filings Monday. Now, it appears that Trump is set to get more than even the $20million a mediator for both sides proposed, and is set to have a new rule named after himself at the network.
Trump alleges the 60 Minutes footage was manipulated to 'tip the scales' in Harris's favor. CBS has denied the claim, slamming the allegations as coming 'completely without merit.' In recent weeks, Paramount reportedly balked at settling the suit over fears of facing legal backlash for bowing to the president.
Paramount brass believed any large settlement could be considered a bribe, since the the company's proposed $8 billion merger with Skydance must be approved by the Trump administration. Trump's team has denied that his administration's approval of the deal is contingent on settling. Paramount heiress Shari Redstone, who has been pushing to close the Skydance deal, stands to make more than $1 billion as Paramount's primary shareholder. She reportedly offered to pay as much as $50 million to make the suit go away. Skydance is run by David Ellison, the son of Trump ally Larry Ellison. Last week, sources told the New York Post that David, 41, had become confident the $8 billion deal would close by the end of the summer. Former CBS CEO Wendy McMahon and longtime 60 Minutes boss Bill Owens both left their roles in protest of Paramount's willingness to settle.
The A-List stars of 60 Minutes recently demanded that CBS News appoint their pick for the show's next executive producer. It's a settlement that continues Trump's winning streak against media companies he believes have engaged in dishonest practices against him. In December, ABC News agreed to pay $15 million to Donald Trump to settle a lawsuit over assertions made by top anchor George Stephanopoulos that he was found civilly liable for raping writer E. Jean Carroll. The settlement, first reported by Fox News , was publicly filed on Saturday and revealed that the parties had come to an agreement in the suit. It stipulates that the network will pay $15 million as a charitable contribution towards Trump's presidential library.
ABC will also post a note on its website expressing regret over the claim in a March 10 segment on "This Week" made by Stephanopoulos. They will also pay his legal fees as part of the settlement, which have totaled $1 million. A statement from the network said: 'ABC News and George Stephanopoulos regret statements regarding President Donald J. Trump made during an interview by George Stephanopoulos with Rep. Nancy Mace on ABC's This Week on March 10, 2024.' Trump had sued Stephanopoulos and the network for defamation soon after the segment aired. His lawyers accused Stephanopoulos of making the statements with 'malice' and a disregard for the truth.
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