Paramount Global and Skydance Media said in a regulatory filing Thursday that the companies have not shown that they would be adversely affected by the merger, but rather that the request threatens free speech and that the pending He fired back at those who criticized the merger.
Since the $8 billion deal was announced in July, opponents have raised concerns about potential liberal bias, foreign influence and a lack of diversity.
“These applications are procedurally flawed, seek relief that raises constitutional concerns, and lack merit for other reasons,” Paramount Skydance and its controlling investor National Amusement Co. wrote in the article. mentioned in. filing. “Neither party has identified any transaction-related damages that warrant denying the application or imposing conditions.”
Most recently, the merger between Paramount, home of CBS, MTV, and Paramount+, and independent film producer Skydance drew criticism at the Federal Communications Commission by U.S. rights center LiveVideo.AI and Hughes Media. there was.
The FCC must approve any deal involving the sale of broadcast television stations.
FCC Commissioner-elect Brendan Carr, who will take office when President-elect Donald Trump is inaugurated on January 20, has already expressed concerns about the role of national broadcast media in undermining “public trust” in the news.
Paramount and Skydance said in their filing that the measure proposed by the American Rights Center could violate the Constitution.
The center is a nonprofit organization that files complaints about media bias on other networks. stated in official document The deal should only be approved on the condition that Paramount avoids foreign influence and promotes diversity on its airwaves.
The group noted that China's Tencent Holdings is an investor in Skydance.
“The Center's demand that the commission force 'New Paramount to commit to diversity of viewpoints based on real-world benchmarks and expectations' will force the government to oversee the broadcaster's editorial policies and choices. “It would be abhorrent to the First Amendment because it would place us in an intolerable position,” Skydance said in its filing.
Skydance said Tencent will hold only a minority stake in Paramount with no voting rights after the merger.
Last month, Latino media company Hughes also accused Paramount of giving preferential treatment to its own programming on its Pluto streaming service, a charge Paramount disputed.
Paramount and parent company National Amusements conducted a fraudulent auction for the business, according to live video footage.
The companies responded Thursday that LiveVideo has “no factual support for its claims” and called on the commission to promptly and unconditionally approve their merger.
As The Post's Charles Gasparino reported, people close to the mega deal said Kerr could make a number of dramatic changes to the deal before giving it the green light. .
One such change could be that CBS could be required to fully comply with standards set for U.S. broadcast licensees to be “neutral” news organizations.
Among other things, CBS could be forced to hand over the full transcript of its controversial “60 Minutes” interview with Kamala Harris, according to people close to President Trump's transition team. Trump administration officials believe the interview shows the agency had dirty practices during the transition. 2024 Election.
He also called on Skydance (the Hollywood film studio best known for producing the recent Mission: Impossible series) to prove to Team Trump that CBS will be an impartial arbiter of news. It may also include broader requirements, such as: The Post reported.
Meanwhile, Paramount Global boss Shari Redstone says she's looking forward to a friendly relationship with Trump that will help media giant Paramount Global avoid FCC issues with its merger with Skydance. -Street Journal reported last week.
The media mogul also said Trump's long-standing relationship with Larry Ellison, the father of Oracle co-founder and billionaire Skydance CEO David Ellison, paved the way for an $8 billion deal. I hope this helps you open it.
Representatives for Redstone and Ellison declined to comment at the time.
