President Donald Trump has announced he’s looking for a new owner for CNN as part of the parent company Warner Bros. Discovery’s sale. This suggests that he may favor Paramount Skydance’s bid over Netflix’s recent successful offer.
Netflix has agreed to acquire Warner Bros. Studios and HBO Max, maintaining CNN’s current management team. In contrast, Paramount Skydance wants to take over the entire Warner Bros. Discovery, including CNN, planning to put it under the leadership of Bari Weiss, who heads news at CBS’s subsidiary.
In an unusual move for U.S. regulatory processes, Trump indicated that he wishes to be directly involved in the review of the sale and emphasized the need for CNN to have completely new management.
“Any deal should ensure that CNN is either included or sold separately. The current management is very dishonest and shouldn’t continue,” he commented to reporters on Wednesday.
Trump’s remarks coincide with efforts by Paramount Skydance owner David Ellison and his father, Larry, to manage the fallout from a controversial interview with Marjorie Taylor Greene that aired on “60 Minutes,” which led Trump to criticize both the new owners and the interview.
Paramount executives have stated that the “60 Minutes” team was largely unaware of the controversial nature of the interview prior to its airing, leading to Trump’s disapproval of Paramount’s current management as being akin to its predecessors.
“Since we bought it, ’60 Minutes’ has actually gotten worse!” Trump expressed of the Ellisons.
Trump went on to label the “60 Minutes” correspondent Leslie Stahl as a “Trump-hating correspondent” and criticized the decision to air the Greene interview.
Ellison and other Paramount executives have claimed they weren’t informed about the broadcast until it went live, and a source noted that when Paramount Skydance discovered the interview’s content, they were upset.
A spokesperson from Paramount referred all inquiries to a CBS representative, who declined to comment.
This situation underscores the challenges of operating a news organization—and a heavily regulated business—during Trump’s presidency, as media insiders suggest his comments about CNN illustrate his intent to exert pressure aligned with his political agenda.
Previously, Trump sought to “neutralize” CNN’s purported anti-MAGA stance, which influenced his support for the Ellisons in the bid conflict.
Part of Paramount’s appeal to Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders to withdraw from Netflix’s offer is their claim of “regulatory certainty,” arguing less risk regarding antitrust issues compared to Netflix. Additionally, they highlight that Larry Ellison is a long-time supporter of MAGA.
On Monday, Paramount Skydance made a “hostile bid” to overturn Warner Bros. Discovery’s decision to favor Netflix, asserting that their all-cash offer of $30 per share is better than Netflix’s cash and stock proposal, which is reportedly valued at $30.075 per share. Netflix’s bid seeks Warner Studios and HBO Max while considering a spinoff of Warner Bros. Discovery’s cable assets, including CNN, as part of the deal.
Besides the complex political landscape shaped by Trump, financial aspects will play a crucial role in any agreement. As previously noted, Paramount Skydance and Netflix are gearing up for a bidding war that could see the winning offer rise to $35 per share, valuing the company at around $91 billion. Before Warner Bros. Discovery began actively seeking buyers, its market value was approximately $31 billion.
