Paramount Plans $200 Million Purchase of Bari Weiss’ The Free Press
Paramount is gearing up to spend up to $200 million to acquire Bari Weiss’ media venture, The Free Press. This decision comes as the company is still grappling with the aftermath of the $8 billion merger with Skydance, which has shaken up its news division significantly.
Weiss, who formerly edited the opinion section at The New York Times and founded The Free Press in 2022, is expected to step into a senior editor role at CBS News as part of the deal to integrate her platform into the larger Paramount structure. Reports suggest that this move is nearing completion, with sources estimating the purchase price between $100 million and $200 million, though Paramount has refrained from making any official comments.
The planned acquisition follows last month’s significant merger between David Ellison’s Skydance Media and Paramount Global, which shifted control away from the Redstone family and firmly placed CBS and CBS News under Ellison’s leadership.
Following a shake-up at CBS News, the FCC approved the merger, which aims to address concerns about bias in news coverage by establishing an ombudsman and dismantling previous diversity efforts. These proposed changes have stirred unease within CBS, and some insiders have expressed concerns about the potential impact on the organization’s independent reporting tradition.
Weiss is known for her critiques of both left-leaning and right-leaning perspectives, having created a platform that offers a blend of essays, interviews, and research outside the typical media framework. If this acquisition proceeds, it would mark her most significant role in mainstream media since her departure from The New York Times.
The timing of Weiss’ potential position aligns with the pressures on Ellison to revitalize CBS News and address falling ratings. His massive acquisition was seen as a way to bolster Paramount’s content, but CBS News—often regarded as a cornerstone of American broadcast journalism—has surfaced as a contentious issue in political circles during the regulatory process.
FCC officials scrutinized CBS News’ coverage, ultimately stipulating the establishment of the Ombudsman office and the elimination of certain diversity initiatives as conditions for merger approval. Furthermore, Paramount was cleared after reaching an agreement regarding a lawsuit filed by former President Trump against CBS News stemming from a “60 Minutes” interview with Kamala Harris.
Neither Paramount nor Weiss has provided public commentary on these developments at this time.
