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What could go wrong with one huge movie company acquiring another? I guess we'll have to wait and see after several U.S. states dropped their lawsuits trying to prevent Paramount from taking over Warner Bros., a major producer of films and TV series.
Paramount already controls CBS and its recent changes to its news coverage to favour the current Administration has led to dramatic rating declines for both the CBS Evening News and 60 Minutes.
The deal gives Paramount access to HBO and CNN, which are Warners owned. Does this mean CNN is about to become Fox News lite? We'll see, although the deal is supposed to have a clause that ensures the world's first all news network stays independent.
"The entertainment giant has agreed to establish a “news editorial independence board” to safeguard the journalist freedom of CNN and CBS News... as well as an independent monitor to ensure adherence to all the terms."
How did that safeguard work out for CBS News? I can hardly wait to see what HBO's Bill Maher (of "Real Time" fame) has to say about suddenly working for a pro-Trump network. Some of the early details about the new "editorial board" can be found here.
We'll have to wait and see how long it takes for any changes to be detected once all the i's are dotted and t's are crossed, but this concentrated ownwership of two of the biggest studios in the world is not good news for those who prefer competition.
States settle lawsuit over Paramount-Warner merger, clearing key hurdle for $81 billion deal
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I never understood why 12 states were planning to take this merger to court and sue because of less competition. Other than California and maybe Georgia why would any state care? Any time two companies amalgamate there is less competition.
Interesting tonight that CNN's media reporter Brian Stelter mentioned that part of the merger would include plans to amalgamate the CNN and CBS news operations.
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Well, there goes CNN!
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Hate to break it to ya but every network is pro-Trump. Just like they all were pro-Biden and pro-Trump before that. CNN still makes piles of money. They'll amalgamate some distribution and support services but they're not merging newsrooms. Besides, he'll probably sell one or both of them before the end of the decade.
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Mavridis wrote:
Hate to break it to ya but every network is pro-Trump. Just like they all were pro-Biden and pro-Trump before that. CNN still makes piles of money. They'll amalgamate some distribution and support services but they're not merging newsrooms. Besides, he'll probably sell one or both of them before the end of the decade.
I am confused and I guess Trump is as well. If every network is pro Trump then why did he call them biased and accuse them of only presenting negative stories about him. Why did he ban CNN and MSNow from the White House. Why does he call CBS, ABC and NBC fake news? Guess he doesn't think they are pro Trump.
Believe Stelter said they would amalgamate news operations. They also announced some group to oversee that the news on CNN and CBS remain separate, whatever that means....I am sure details are to come.
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CNN Mood ‘Like a Funeral’ as Paramount’s Warner Bros. Win Casts New Haze on Next Steps
"CNN must also grapple with how much independence it will have under Paramount. Paramount Skydance CEO has put CBS News into unorthodox situations by holding a private dinner with personnel from the news division and the Trump administration and by hiring a factotum ombudsman to monitor CBS who has staunch partisan ties."
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This article outlines the possible (and I hate to say likely) future of CNN under its soon-to-be new regime, noting you may not see changes right away. But they're coming.
"Paramount has already invested heavily in CBS News and is widely expected to put its own executives in charge of CNN rather than leave the current structure intact. That would be the fastest way to set a new tone. CNN, long perceived as center-left, has already tried to present a more centrist, “just the news” posture. Under Paramount, that push toward the middle is expected to continue — not because a settlement board will rewrite scripts, but because new owners typically install managers who match the direction they want."
I will miss the old CNN when that day comes.
CNN Will See Big Changes Under Paramount Leadership