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Inside Trump and David Ellison’s Private Party in Washington

NYT > Business > Media · Michael M. Grynbaum · last updated

The gathering included executives and leading journalists from CBS News, which Paramount owns, and the head of the Justice Department, which is reviewing the acquisition.

David Ellison, the billionaire media mogul, feted President Trump and top members of his administration at a private dinner in Washington on Thursday as his company, Paramount, seeks federal sign-off on a $111 billion deal to buy Warner Bros. Discovery.

The gathering, at the U.S. Institute of Peace, included top executives and journalists from CBS News, which Paramount owns. Bari Weiss, the network’s editor in chief, joined Mr. Ellison at Mr. Trump’s table, and Norah O’Donnell, the former “Evening News” anchorwoman, also attended, according to two people briefed on details of the closed-door event.

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