A collection of Democrats who sit on both the House Judiciary Committee and House Energy & Commerce Committee, which maintains oversight of the FCC, have launched an inquiry into whether the Chief Executive Officer of Paramount Skydance Corporation “agreed to pay millions of dollars and provide free services to Donald Trump prior to Skydance’s merger with Paramount.”
Leading the charge: Jamin Raskin, the Maryland Congressman who took a starring role in evacuating House chambers during the January 6, 2021 storming of the Capitol in an act of insurrection by various parties; and Frank Pallone Jr., the acerbic voice of opposition on the House E&C Committee. Each serve as Ranking Members of their respective committees.
Raskin and Pallone are demanding answers of David Ellison following the merger of Skydance Media and Paramount Global, the parent company of CBS. FCC approval of the long-proposed deal came on July 24, putting the wheels in motion on the exit of Redstone family control of CBS through its National Amusements, Inc., investment in the company.
The query comes in the form of letter to Ellison, in which Raskin and Pallone point to “troubling statements” from the president indicating that he expects to receive $20 million more from the new owners of CBS — Skydance — in advertising, public services announcements, or similar programming for a total of over $36 million. The claims were based on a report appearing on July 22 by The Wall Street Journal in a report from Joe Flint.
Raskin and Pallone also assert that the agreement also includes changes to editorial practices that align with the Trump Administration’s political agenda, including a commitment to eliminate “perceived bias” in its reporting, the hiring of a new ombudsman to “root out” so-called politicization, and more, they say.
“Alarmingly, the FCC’s decision came only after Skydance and Paramount agreed to provide millions of dollars in payments and free services to Donald Trump himself and millions to support his future presidential library,” Pallone and Raskin wrote in their letter to Ellison, available HERE. “Further, the announcement of onboarding a new ombudsman to ‘root out’ such politicization is a poorly disguised attempt at censoring speech that contradicts the Administration’s ideals. We write today to demand information and answers regarding these suspicious and troubling transactions.”
In the days and weeks leading up to government approval of the merger, Paramount agreed to pay $16 million to settle President Trump’s lawsuit related to allegations of “news bias” with regard to an interview with Vice President Kamala Harris appearing on both “Face the Nation” and on “60 Minutes.” The cancellation of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” was also singled out by the two House Democrats, even though CBS leaders have stated the end of “The Late Show” franchise is in no way related to any of the legal matters involving the president nor a capitulation to FCC demands paving the way for regulatory approval of the Skydance deal.
Don’t tell that to Pallone and Raskin. “This offer was necessarily contingent on the FCC approving the deal and does not appear to present any legitimate value to the public, only to President Trump,” they said. “Therefore, this appears to be an offer of payment and benefits to a government official designed to achieve a specific outcome from the government — in other words, a bribe.”
What the two Ranking Members seek from Ellison are details including whether Skydance made any offers or promises to President Trump prior to the merger’s approval. Furthermore, they seek information about the FCC’s involvement in the process and vow “to crack down on any actions that exceed the FCC’s authority or betray its mission.”
Ellison is asked to provide detailed answers to both Raskin and Pallone no later than September 3.
“Two wrongs do not make a right — illegitimate demands from the FCC or the Administration do not absolve your company from wrongdoing,” they state. “If Skydance offered a side deal of up to $20 million worth of advertisement or programming to President Trump in order to receive regulatory approval for the merger with Paramount, these actions would run afoul of federal and state anti-bribery statutes. Similarly, if Paramount forced out CBS’s longtime leaders, spent $16 million to settle a sham lawsuit with President Trump, or cancelled a highly popular comedy show that President Trump dislikes in order to curry favor with the Administration and to receive regulatory approval for the merger with Skydance, these actions would likely further embolden President Trump to use lawsuits and regulatory authority to attack media organizations that he finds objectionable in order to silence them. These actions would also be illegal, running afoul of federal and state anti-bribery statutes.”
