US regulators clear $8.4 billion Paramount-Skydance merger amid political scrutiny
The FCC has approved Skydance Media’s $8.4 billion acquisition of Paramount, putting CBS and Paramount Pictures under David Ellison’s control in a deal shadowed by a Trump lawsuit settlement and political controversy.
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The Federal Communications Commission on Thursday approved the $8.4 billion merger between Paramount Global and Skydance Media, paving the way for tech scion David Ellison to take control of the storied entertainment company in a deal shadowed by political controversy.
The commission’s 2-1 vote, along party lines, allows the transfer of CBS’s television stations to Skydance, which will acquire assets including the CBS broadcast network, Paramount Pictures, and Nickelodeon. The approval follows a months-long review and comes just weeks after Paramount paid $16 million to settle a lawsuit filed by President Donald Trump, a move that drew accusations the company had effectively bought political favor to secure its merger, as per reports.
Anna Gomez, the lone Democratic commissioner, opposed the deal, accusing Paramount of “cowardly capitulation” to the Trump administration and warning that the FCC was imposing “never-before-seen controls over newsroom decisions.” The settlement resolved a lawsuit Trump had brought against CBS and Paramount over the editing of a “60 Minutes” interview with Vice President Kamala Harris, which Trump argued was designed to favor his political opponent.
Brendan Carr, the FCC chairman, dismissed suggestions of a link between the settlement and the merger review, as per a Reuters report. He said Skydance had provided assurances of a commitment to “unbiased journalism,” including pledges to appoint an ombudsman to handle complaints about editorial bias at CBS, the report stated. Skydance also told regulators it would not implement diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, aligning with Trump’s stance that such programs are discriminatory.
The deal, which had been under regulatory review for more than 250 days, marks the end of an era for the Redstone family, which built Paramount into a media empire spanning television, film and publishing under the late Sumner Redstone. His daughter, Shari Redstone, who became chair in 2019, sought to position the company to compete in a rapidly evolving media landscape dominated by streaming giants. Instead, Paramount has shed billions in market value in recent years amid industry upheaval.
The approval clears the way for Ellison, son of Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, to become chair and chief executive of the new Paramount. Jeff Shell, the former chief executive of NBCUniversal, will serve as president. Chris McCarthy, one of Paramount’s current co-CEOs, is expected to depart once the transaction closes, as per Reuters.
The move also reverberated within CBS’s newsroom, where “The Late Show” host Stephen Colbert labeled the settlement “a big fat bribe” on air. Paramount canceled the show days later, citing financial reasons unrelated to politics.
