President Trump’s Paramount and representatives are scheduled to meet Wednesday before a mediator who will determine the fate of Trump’s $20 billion lawsuit against CBS, the Post learned.
It’s all in the midst of shutting down a $8 billion merger with independent studio Skydance as CBS Network has been accused of leaning in favor of 2024 elections by making a seemingly compilation of a “60-minute” interview with Kamala Harris.
The transaction also requires approval from Trump’s Federal Communications Commission. Putting an end to a lawsuit is seen as a way to facilitate the approval process, but how mediators control it remains unclear.
A spokesman for Paramount declined to comment, but did not deny mediation Wednesday. Trump’s lawyers did not respond to requests for comment.
Paramount’s controlling shareholder Shari Redstone knows she wants to soften other demands by the Trump FCC to drive the transaction through the regulatory approval process.
This includes meeting the demand from Trump FCC Chairman Brendan Kerr to end diversity, equity and inclusion policies that the Trump administration believes will lead to illegal racial allocations in employment.
Carr also wants to ensure that CBS refrains from political bias in news coverage (as opposed to cable) and complies with FCC fairness rules for networks broadcast on so-called public radio waves.
Skydance people will run Paramount and CBS if the transaction is approved, but are said to be ready to agree to Carr’s request for termination of DEI and programming to meet fairness metrics. (Skydance official declined to comment.)
Conservatives have long complained about new programming on CBS and the “60 minutes” political bias. The network, they say, will demand a fair news programme on flu, the so-called FCC “public interest” rules. The FCC has started an investigation at the beginning of the year following a public interest complaint about Harris’ interview and has narrowed its Skydance deal for several months as it investigates allegations made by conservative legal groups.
“Finally, you can see the light at the end of the tunnel,” said one person working on the transaction.
That path can be expensive in terms of money and fame. In an interview with Harris in October 2024 with “60 Minutes,” legal experts question Trump’s lawsuit against CBS, which claims a seemingly edited Word-Salad response. Among other things, they say the lawsuit failed to meet the high bar that it hurt Trump’s election efforts. In the end, Trump won the 2024 election. CBS. On the other hand, it denied that it was edited at first glance.
Additionally, the cave to Trump – by agreeing to pay to resolve the issue or issuing an apology – Redstone could undermine the credibility of one of the most respected assets in television journalism. If the mediator supports Trump and awards him near his $2 billion in damages, he can easily eat around $2.4 billion in redstone as part of the Skydance deal.
Redstone clearly seeks much less gunfire and approves the deal.
This means that she may offer an apology for reports she believes Trump is biased and pay a small settlement.
The insider wants a settlement in line with the policy of ABC agreeing to resolve the honour-loss case brought by Trump when ABC paid a total of $16 million, and has issued a statement of regret after star anchor George Stephanopoulos inaccurately discovered that the president was responsible for the rape of writer E. Jean Carroll Laurel.
