Skydance responds to Dems, denies bribery accusations, involvement in Colbert decision ahead of Paramount deal
"Throughout its history and during the review of the proposed acquisition of Paramount, Skydance has fully complied with all applicable laws, including our nation's anti-bribery laws," Skydance General Counsel Stephanie Kyoko McKinnon wrote to Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., in a letter first reported by Deadline.
McKinnon's letter also said Skydance was "not involved" in the cancellation of "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert." The announcement, made on July 17, was reportedly in the works before Colbert spoke out that week against parent company Paramount for settling President Donald Trump's election interference lawsuit against CBS News and "60 Minutes."
McKinnon noted that Paramount did provide notice to Skydance about axing Colbert's show, which will stay on the air until May, but only after the company had made its own independent decision on the matter.
According to Deadline, McKinnon also said Skydance "was neither a party to the lawsuit nor to Paramount's settlement of its litigation" with Trump. She added that Paramount requested, and received, Skydance's consent that one of the settlement terms included CBS News making public transcripts of its interviews with White House candidates in the future.
The liberal senators had previously warned Paramount that "it is illegal to corruptly give anything of value to federal officials to influence an official act — and if Paramount settles the lawsuit in a quid-pro-quo arrangement to influence the Administration's assessment of the Paramount-Skydance deal, company officials could be breaking the law."
Paramount was accused of paying, as Colbert put it, a "big, fat bribe" to the Trump administration in the form of a $16 million settlement of the suit ahead of the FCC approving its merger with Skydance. Fox News Digital previously reported another eight-figure sum would be allocated for advertisements and public service announcements for conservative causes set to be funded by the new ownership.
Last week, FCC Chair Brendan Carr announced he was giving the Paramount-Skydance merger the go-ahead, citing multiple commitments Skydance said it would make.
"Americans no longer trust the legacy national news media to report fully, accurately, and fairly. It is time for a change. That is why I welcome Skydance's commitment to make significant changes at the once-storied CBS broadcast network," Carr said in a statement. "In particular, Skydance has made written commitments to ensure that the new company's programming embodies a diversity of viewpoints from across the political and ideological spectrum. Skydance will also adopt measures that can root out the bias that has undermined trust in the national news media."
"These commitments, if implemented, would enable CBS to operate in the public interest and focus on fair, unbiased, and fact-based coverage. Doing so would begin the process of earning back Americans' trust. Today's decision also marks another step forward in the FCC's efforts to eliminate invidious forms of DEI discrimination. And Skydance's commitment to enhancing local news and reporting—coverage valued by the public—will also inure to the benefit of the American people," Carr continued.
The Paramount-Skydance deal is set to close August 7.
The newly formed Paramount Skydance Corp. is led by CEO David Ellison, the son of billionaire Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, and former NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell, who will serve as president. Paramount's controlling shareholder Shari Redstone, who controlled more than three-quarters of Paramount's Class A voting shares, will exit the company.
Before the merger became official, Paramount and CBS agreed to settle Trump's "election interference" lawsuit last month for a sum expected to be north of $30 million, including $16 million upfront for Trump's presidential library.
Redstone, who recused herself from discussions related to Trump's lawsuit in February, wasn't thrilled with being tied up in litigation with the sitting president and signed off on a settlement. It is widely believed that she wanted to settle in hopes of preventing potential retribution by Trump's FCC, which had the authority to halt the merger with Skydance.
Meanwhile, Paramount ignited further backlash among liberals last week when it announced the cancellation of "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert." CBS insisted it was purely a financial decision, while many critics, including top Democrats, accused the network of political motivation ahead of the Skydance merger.
But Colbert's show was reportedly losing CBS $40 million a year and had been running on a whopping $100 million budget per season.
Still, Paramount has been at the receiving end of intense criticism for its recent moves, including on its own programs like "The Daily Show" hosted by Jon Stewart and "South Park," both of which air on Paramount-owned Comedy Central.
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