Trump Discusses CBS Ownership and Critiques Media During White House Roundtable
During a recent roundtable at the White House, President Donald Trump expressed some optimism for CBS, mentioning that there is “hope” for the network under “great new ownership.”
This meeting, dubbed the “Antifa Roundtable,” included figures like U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, FBI Director Kash Patel, and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, alongside several right-wing independent media journalists. These journalists shared their personal accounts of dealing with radical left-wing groups that Trump has labeled as domestic terrorists.
In the discussion, journalists highlighted how mainstream media has overlooked stories regarding Antifa and cited instances like a CNN Chiron suggesting a “violent but mostly peaceful protest” related to the 2020 riots.
During the conversation, Trump backed these criticisms, accusing Antifa of working in tandem with various media outlets. While he mentioned his cautious optimism for CBS, he didn’t hold back in criticizing other networks. “I think ABC is very bad,” he stated bluntly. “NBC is very bad. We’re hopeful for CBS because CBS has a new owner—CBS has a great new owner.” Still, in typical fashion, he added, “But, honestly, ABC sucks. NBC is terrible, too.”
It seems Trump was referring to the merger between CBS’s parent company, Paramount Global, and Skydance Media, overseen now by CEO David Ellison, who has made CBS News a top priority.
One significant change already in motion under Ellison’s leadership is the appointment of Bari Weiss as editor-in-chief of CBS News, following Paramount’s acquisition of The Free Press. Weiss will collaborate with CBS News President Tom Sibrowski and report directly to Ellison.
Fox News Digital has reached out to both CBS and Paramount for comments regarding these developments.
In a lively segment, Trump asked participating journalists what networks they viewed as the most problematic, with many agreeing that MSNBC topped the list, followed closely by CNN. “MSNBC, that’s really a shame to see. And CNN, well, they’re number two. Not that they’re as bad as MSNBC, but still pretty terrible,” Trump remarked.
