Cold Front at CNN
Inside the halls of Hudson Yards, and across CNN’s bureaus worldwide, staffers have been anxiously whispering about the suddenly real possibility of yet another corporate takeover. The network, which has already changed ownership twice in the past decade and weathered multiple leadership shakeups, may soon be thrust into another period of upheaval as the Ellison family prepares a bid for Warner Bros. Discovery, the David Zaslav–led conglomerate that owns CNN.
An Ellison takeover would be unlike anything CNN has seen in its 45-year history. Since acquiring Paramount, David Ellison has sought to steer CBS News into more Donald Trump-friendly waters, installing a MAGA-leaning ombudsman to review complaints of bias and moving to acquire Bari Weiss’ The Free Press with plans to install her as editor in chief, or something close to it. WBD already dialed back CNN’s aggressive, Jeff Zucker-led Trump reporting when it took over the network as its parent company in 2022, but an Ellison regime could go much further. In such a scenario, it’s likely that the anti-woke, anti-D.E.I. Weiss, who has spent years bashing the mainstream press, would not only wield influence at CBS News, but would ultimately be handed editorial authority at CNN itself.
According to nearly a dozen current employees and people familiar with the mood inside CNN…
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Donald Trump boards Air Force One in Stansted, England. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Trump Threatens TV Licenses: Emboldened by Disney boss Bob Iger pulling Jimmy Kimmel, Donald Trump is escalating his threats against media outlets. On Thursday aboard Air Force One, he said that television networks providing coverage “against” him should have their broadcast licenses revoked. “They give me only bad publicity, press. I mean, they’re getting a license,” Trump said, “I would think maybe their license should be taken away.” While Trump has long assailed the press and turned it into a rallying cry for his base, his broadcast intimidation comes just one day after Disney pulled Kimmel off the air over FCC boss Brendan Carr’s threats on ABC’s license. On Thursday, Carr told CNBC in the wake of Kimmel’s suspension that “we’re not done yet with the consequences” of “the permission structure that President Trump’s election has provided.” Taken together, it’s clear that Trump and his administration intend to use their federal powers to silence dissent in the media wherever possible. And television station owners like Nexstar and TEGNA, who have business before the FCC, are certainly taking notice.
- Before Disney yanked Jimmy Kimmel’s show Wednesday, he was planning to say…
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