Paramount-Skydance merger approved after companies agree to government speech demands
In light of the Trump administration's critiques of CBS's alleged anti-conservative bias — including collecting a $16 million settlement over the president's lawsuit over an allegedly deceptively edited video of then-Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris on 60 Minutes — the companies' commitment to address bias in the lawsuit likely means featuring more conservative programming. Skydance agreed to employ an ombudsman for at least two years, 'who will receive and evaluate any complaints of bias or other concerns involving CBS.'
'Americans no longer trust the legacy national news media to report fully, accurately, and fairly. It is time for a change,' Republican FCC Chair Brendan Carr said in a statement announcing the agency's approval. 'That is why I welcome Skydance's commitment to make significant changes at the once storied CBS broadcast network.' He said the commitments 'would enable CBS to operate in the public interest and focus on fair, unbiased, and fact-based coverage,' and mark 'another step forward in the FCC's efforts to eliminate invidious forms of DEI discrimination.' Carr also boasts that Skydance 'reaffirms its commitment to localism as a core component of the public interest standard,' and that the approval will 'unleash the investment of $1.5 billion into Paramount.'
Carr has made no secret of his distaste for news coverage he sees as disproportionately unfavorable to the right and DEI policies he believes contribute to unfair treatment. He's opened investigations into all three major networks as well as NPR and PBS (NBCUniversal and its owner Comcast are investors in The Verge parent company Vox Media). A week ago, CBS announced it was retiring The Late Show, hosted by Trump critic and comedian Stephen Colbert. The network said it was 'purely a financial decision.'
The FCC's only remaining Democratic commissioner, Anna Gomez, dissented, writing that, 'In an unprecedented move, this once-independent FCC used its vast power to pressure Paramount to broker a private legal settlement and further erode press freedom … Even more alarming, it is now imposing never-before-seen controls over newsroom decisions and editorial judgment, in direct violation of the First Amendment and the law.' Still, she gave Carr credit for calling a vote on the matter, rather than rubber-stamping the merger through one of the agency's bureaus, like it did for the Verizon-Frontier merger, which similarly required an end to DEI programs.
Gomez warns that this agreement is just the canary in the coal mine. 'The Paramount payout and this reckless approval have emboldened those who believe the government can—and should—abuse its power to extract financial and ideological concessions, demand favored treatment, and secure positive media coverage,' she writes. 'It is a dark chapter in a long and growing record of abuse that threatens press freedom in this country. But such violations endure only when institutions choose capitulation over courage. It is time for companies, journalists, and citizens alike to stand up and speak out, because unchecked and unquestioned power has no rightful place in America.'
Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
See All by Lauren Feiner
Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
See All Business
Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
See All Entertainment
Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
See All Film
Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
See All News
Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
See All Policy
Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
See All Streaming
Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
See All TV Shows
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Washington Post
6 minutes ago
- Washington Post
Trump hosts Starmer in Scotland, promoting his own golf club
EDINBURGH, Scotland — President Donald Trump has transformed the private green at his Turnberry golf course into a venue for high-stakes diplomacy. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer arrived Monday morning to meet with the president near the fairway to hash out a trade deal and discuss the wars in Gaza and Ukraine. On Sunday, European Union Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced the contours of a trade deal at the private club. The meetings provide the latest example of how Trump uses his presidential power not only to govern, but also to help his family businesses. The engagements provide publicity for the courses and funnel taxpayer funds to the Trump Organization, as the U.S. government pays to lodge staff and security details at the properties. Traditionally, American presidents are invited to other countries by their leaders and hosted at diplomatic residences. But Trump is playing host to Starmer in the prime minister's own country, continuing his long tradition of sidestepping presidential norms to mix his family business and his public office. 'It is an unusual dynamic, but that is more of an issue for the U.S.,' said David Henig, director of the U.K. Trade Policy Project for the European Centre for International Political Economy. 'U.K. prime ministers have always said, we will just deal with the U.S. presidents as we find them.' Asked about the potential conflicts of interest, White House officials noted that the golf courses are held in a trust managed by Trump's children. 'President Trump's working trip to Scotland has already been a huge success, securing a historic trade agreement with the EU. President Trump is always acting in the best interest of the American people delivering GOOD deals that put America First,' White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers said in a written statement. 'Donald J. Trump has built the best and most beautiful world-class golf courses anywhere in the world, which is why they continue to be used for prestigious tournaments and by the most elite players in the sport.' Trump and Starmer told reporters Monday that they plan to discuss tariffs — including those levied on whisky — and aid to Gaza and Ukraine. In an exchange with reporters as Starmer arrived, Trump said he plans to shorten the 50-day deadline he gave Russian President Vladimir Putin to reach a ceasefire in Ukraine, reflecting his mounting frustration with the Kremlin. He also repeated his complaint that no one has said 'thank you' for aid the United States has sent to Gaza for food, where deaths from starvation and malnutrition are rising, and stressed his continued focus on rescuing Israeli hostages. Trump's visit, which includes the opening of a new golf course in Aberdeenshire, on Scotland's east coast, will cost American taxpayers millions of dollars for travel and security. While all other presidents in the era of jet travel have regularly used Air Force One for personal travel and are protected by the Secret Service as they do so, the government was not paying hotel fees to businesses they owned to house security details or White House staff. The U.S. government paid $68,800 to Trump's Turnberry resort in 2018 to cover the cost of Trump's visit to the course on Scotland's west coast during his first term, according to a report in the Scotsman newspaper. In between negotiating trade accords and batting back questions about the Jeffrey Epstein files, Trump used his time in Scotland over the weekend to promote the course. He posted videos of himself golfing on Truth Social, the social network he partially owns. He also cited praise from the retired professional golfer Gary Player. 'The Great Gary Player: 'Turnberry is, without a question, in the Top Five Greatest Golf Courses I've ever played in my 73 years as a Pro.' Thank you, Gary!'' he wrote. Trump Turnberry was one of Trump's most expensive properties and has struggled to turn a profit since his company purchased it in 2014. Trump spent $67 million to buy the property and an additional $144 million to renovate it. The course lost $1.7 million in the 2023 fiscal year, according to a filing from the company which operates the course. Trump has some supporters in the Turnberry area, where his club is a significant employer, but also many detractors. Scotts have hosted demonstrations across the country this week in protest of his stay. 'We're operating in nonstandard territory in terms of seeing him using Scotland as just a meeting room and use his properties as a venue for trade talks,' said Jack Nevin, who organized a protest Saturday in Edinburgh on behalf of Stop Trump Coalition. 'It's par for the course with his rank corruption and promoting his own businesses as president.' Amy B Wang contributed to this report.
The Hill
7 minutes ago
- The Hill
Former ambassador to EU: 15 percent tariff can be baked into profit margins
President Trump's first-term ambassador to the European Union, Gordon Sondland, brushed off concerns on Sunday about higher prices for Americans following news of the U.S.-EU trade deal, which set tariffs at 15 percent on European goods. In an interview with CNN's Jessica Dean, Sondland was asked to respond to folks who see the 15 percent tariff on imported goods and are worried that, for example, their perfume bottles from France will now be 15 percent more expensive. He said Americans might initially see higher prices, but they will soon adjust as competition returns to the market. 'At 15 percent, I think consumers will initially pay, but I also think that this will be baked into the profit margins — or a reduction of the profit margins — on a lot of these products, because the market will start to pull prices back down again as there's more competition,' he said. Sondland said a 15 percent rate will generate enough revenue to make a dent in the reduction of the annual deficit. 'I think at a 15 percent tariff, it's enough to generate. If everything that we imported bore a 15 percent tariff, that would generate about $450 billion for the United States Treasury, which would make an enormous dent in our annual deficit,' Sondland said. 'If the tariff were 30 or 40 or 50 percent, that would be an absolute shutdown, so that wouldn't work. But 10 to 15, I think we can swallow it, and I think it's going to generate a tremendous amount of money if Congress doesn't piss it away on other things,' he added. Trump and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen announced a trade deal on Sunday, setting tariffs at 15 percent for European goods, including automobiles. The European Union will purchase $750 billion worth of energy from the U.S. as part of the deal, Trump announced, and agreed to invest in the U.S. $600 billion more than the current investments for other goods. The agreement is lower than the 30 percent tariff Trump had threatened to impose on the EU, which would have begun on Friday, and avoids a trade war with the U.S.'s largest trading partner.
The Hill
7 minutes ago
- The Hill
Trump CIA chief: Brennan, Comey and Hillary Clinton could face indictment
CIA Director John Ratcliffe said he made referrals to the Justice Department for former Obama administration officials following the release of intelligence information about the 2016 election. Ratcliffe said that former CIA Director John Brennan, former Director of National Intelligence (DNI) James Clapper, and former FBI Director James Comey could all face charges relating to what he called a 'hoax' about the election. Tulsi Gabbard, who now leads DNI in the Trump administration, last week released two sets of documents about the 2016 election. The files reveal little new information about Russia's much-studied efforts to influence the 2016 election, but Republicans have nonetheless claimed the intelligence reviews were designed to cast doubt on Trump's victory. The documents do not undercut a central conclusion: that Russia lunched a massive campaign with the hopes of influencing the contest. 'That's why I've made the referrals that I have, DNI Gabbard has made referrals, and why we're gonna continue to share the intelligence that would support the ability of our Department of Justice to make fair and just, bring fair and justice claims against those who have perpetrated this hoax against the American people and this stain on our country,' Ratcliffe said during an appearance on Fox's Sunday Morning Futures. The releases from Gabbard came amid ongoing pressure on the Trump administration to release files related to the controversy surrounding Jeffrey Epstein. They also followed a period in which Gabbard seemed to have lost some clout within the administration. While Gabbard has claimed the documents she has released show a 'treasonous conspiracy,' they largely show intelligence leaders discussing how the Russians were never able to alter vote tabulations — something that was never in dispute and that aligns with what Obama officials said publicly at the time. What intelligence did find, and which several reviews have since backed, was that Russia embarked on a massive social media campaign in the hopes of sowing division in the U.S. Last week, Gabbard released another report, this time a classified review led by Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee. That report cast doubt on whether Russian President Vladimir Putin aimed to aid Trump as opposed to sowing discord within the U.S. In the process of releasing that report, Gabbard infuriated Democrats, who argued she exposed sources and methods for gathering intelligence. At the time the classified report was conducted, a bipartisan Senate Intelligence Committee report, a panel led at the time by now-Secretary of State Marco Rubio, blacked the conclusion Russia favored Trump. Nonetheless, the Justice Department has since established a so-called Strike Force to review the information. Ratcliffe said there would also be additional information released. 'John Brennan testified to John Durham in August of 2020. He also testified to the House Oversight Committee in 2022. Hillary Clinton testified before John Durham under oath in 2022. James Comey testified before the Senate committee in September, 2020. All of that's within the last five years. And much of that testimony is frankly, completely inconsistent with what our underlying intelligence that is about to be declassified in the Durham Annex — what that reflects,' he said. 'And so, you know, [Attorney General] Pam Bondi does have a strike force. It is a different Department of Justice, a different FBI, and an opportunity to look at how these people really did conspire to run a hoax, a fraud on the American people and against Donald Trump's presidency.'
