More than 200 journalists, academics and filmmakers have signed a letter warning that Paramount Skydance’s proposed merger with Warner Bros. Discovery will lead to “improper political meddling” at CNN similar to the “sweeping changes” made at CBS designed to “appease” President Donald Trump.
The bombshell intervention from the Freedom of the Press Foundation, first reported by Status, raises concerns about about Paramount CEO David Ellison, the son of Trump ally Larry Ellison, and his apparently cozy relationship with the current administration.
Last month, Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders voted to back the $110 billion merger with Paramount Skydance. Antitrust regulators are yet to approve the deal.
The blockbuster move is set to transform the entertainment landscape by uniting two major Hollywood studios, and streaming platforms HBO Max and Paramount+.
But the letter argues the merger will also have far-reaching implications for the news business, as it brings CNN and CBS under one roof, and highlights a Wall Street Journal report suggesting David Ellison promised Trump “sweeping changes” at CNN if the merger is approved.
The letter claims Ellison “already made such sweeping changes to appease Trump” at CBS News after Skydance merged with Paramount last year, and points to the installation of “Trump-aligned columnist” Bari Weiss as CBS News editor-in-chief.
Of Ellison’s tenure at CBS, the missive says: “News segments critical of Trump policies have been pulled; revered producers and reporters have quit rather than be censored; shows Trump dislikes, like ‘The Late Show With Stephen Colbert,’ have been cancelled; and CBS Evening News has taken to airing flattering features on Trump officials, like one calling Secretary of State Marco Rubio the ‘ultimate Florida man.’”
“With this track record, Ellison will likely alter CNN’s editorial direction (not to mention meddle with HBO’s documentaries) to be more friendly to the administration, threatening press freedom,” the letter adds.
The written warning goes on to argue that regulators and lawmakers should treat the proposed tie-up as a “political arrangement to circumvent constitutional safeguards, with severe consequences for American democracy.”
Among the signatories is former CNN anchor Jim Acosta, former ABC and CBS News correspondent Judy Muller, and Oscar-winning filmmaker Laura Poitras.
David Ellison, who reportedly “honored” the president at an “intimate” dinner last month, has previously addressed the fears about what Paramount’s takeover would mean for CNN.
“Editorial independence will actually be maintained,” he told CNBC in March. “It’s maintained at CBS, it’ll be maintained at CNN.”
