Paramount Skydance boss David Ellison has officially broken his silence on the fate of CNN following his US$110.9 billion (AU$156 billion) conquest of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD). His message to the panicked newsroom?
Your jobs – and your editorial independence – are safe.
Appearing on CNBC on Thursday, the newly crowned media titan sought to extinguish the growing political firestorm surrounding the takeover.
With critics warning that the Ellison family’s close ties to the Trump administration would result in a hard-right pivot for the global news brand, Ellison insisted CNN will remain fiercely independent.
The ‘truth and trust’ business
“Editorial independence will absolutely be maintained at CBS and at CNN,” Ellison told the network. “We want to talk to the 70% of Americans, and really around the world, who identify as center-left and center-right. And we want to be in the truth business.
We want to be in the trust business. And that’s not going to change.”
The reassurance comes after a week of intense speculation. US President Donald Trump, alongside his press secretary Karoline Leavitt, has spent years using the network as his ultimate “fake news” punching bag.
US press secretary, Karoline Leavitt lashes out on CNN‘s Kaitlan Collins. Just another day in the office. Image: CNN
Trump had previously urged new ownership to either sell or shutter the 45-year-old network entirely.
Adding fuel to the fire, Ellison’s recent takeover of CBS News saw him install former New York Times opinion journalist Bari Weiss as editor-in-chief and hire an ombudsman to monitor the network for “political bias.”
Despite the track record at CBS, Ellison heaped praise on WBD’s news division. “CNN is an incredible brand with an incredible team,” he said. “And we absolutely believe in the independence that obviously needs to be maintained for those incredible journalists. And we want to support that going forward.”
Streaming the news
Beyond the political theatre, Ellison stressed that acquiring CNN is a crucial pillar of his broader streaming strategy.
While much of the Wall Street chatter has focused on merging Paramount+ and HBO Max into a 200-million-subscriber entertainment juggernaut, Ellison views live news as the ultimate retention tool.
“We’re going to invest in the news business. This transaction will be a positive for both CBS and CNN,” Ellison confirmed, signaling that both newsrooms will play a foundational role in the combined platform’s offering.
Whether Ellison can successfully blend two legacy news operations, combine a massive streaming tech stack, and navigate a US$79 billion debt load without drawing the ire of the White House remains to be seen.
But for now, the embattled news network is officially part of the Paramount family.