Paramount to pay $16 million to settle Donald Trump lawsuit over edited Kamala Harris interview
Trump originally filed the lawsuit in October, seeking $10 billion in damages. The lawsuit was later amended to seek $20 billion in damages and to include allegations under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices-Consumer Protection Act.
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Paramount Global has agreed to pay $16 million to settle a lawsuit brought by US President Donald Trump over claims that CBS News, a Paramount subsidiary, deceptively edited a pre-election interview with Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential candidate.
The settlement marks another instance of a major media company moving to resolve litigation with Trump, who has made combatting what he calls “fake news” central to his political identity. It also comes as Paramount is seeking regulatory approval for an $8.4 billion merger with Skydance Media, a deal requiring signoff from the Federal Communications Commission, which is chaired by Brendan Carr, a Trump appointee, according to reports.
Reports stated that Paramount said the funds would be directed, at Trump’s discretion, to either his future presidential library or to charitable causes, but would not be paid to him “directly or indirectly.” The company did not issue an apology or statement of regret as part of the settlement.
Trump originally filed the lawsuit in October, seeking $10 billion in damages. The suit claimed that CBS’s “60 Minutes” program aired edited footage that misrepresented Harris’s remarks on the Israel-Hamas war, tipping coverage in favor of the Democratic Party. The lawsuit was later amended to seek $20 billion in damages and to include allegations under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices-Consumer Protection Act.
CBS had called the lawsuit “completely without merit” and moved to dismiss the case. Filed in Amarillo, Texas, in a federal court overseen by a Trump-appointed judge, the case entered mediation in April.
As part of the settlement, “60 Minutes” will release transcripts of future interviews with presidential candidates after they air, with exceptions for national security or legal concerns.
Paramount’s agreement follows a string of similar settlements with Trump. In January, Meta Platforms agreed to pay $25 million to settle litigation related to its suspension of Trump’s accounts after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. ABC News also agreed to a reported $15 million settlement over comments made by anchor George Stephanopoulos regarding Mr. Trump’s civil liability in a sexual assault case.
The resolution of the case has reportedly caused unease within the CBS Newsroom, raising questions about the precedent it sets for dealing with litigation tied to editorial decisions and political figures.
