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Does bad news for CBS News translate to bad news for Paramount’s takeover of CNN and the rest of Warner Bros. Discovery?
Not directly, no. But the self-inflicted wounds at CBS News may raise a different question for Paramount CEO David Ellison: Has Bari Weiss become too much of a distraction?
The “60 Minutes” firings and now Scott Pelley’s “CBS News is on fire” interview have exploded in the press just weeks before Paramount would like to complete the blockbuster WBD deal.
“Legally speaking, it doesn’t matter,” an executive involved in the mega-merger said on condition of anonymity. That’s because regulators are examining the deal on antitrust grounds, not on journalism-ethics grounds. “But PR-wise, it might matter,” the source added.
