Skydance CEO David Ellison stressed his commitment to “American storytelling” during a meeting with FCC Chairman Brendan Carr earlier this week in which he discussed his company’s pending $8 billion merger with Paramount.
According to a regulatory filing, Ellison “addressed several issues” critics of the deal have raised, as well as “emphasized the public interest benefits” of Skydance and Paramount merging, during the meeting on July 15.
“We discussed Skydance’s commitment to unbiased journalism and its
embrace of diverse viewpoints, principles that will ensure CBS’s editorial decision-making reflects the varied ideological perspectives of American viewers,” Skydance attorney Matthew A. Brill said in the filing on Thursday.
Ellison was joined by Greg Watson, his chief of staff, and Ben Arden, special counsel in the Office of the Bureau Chief of the Media Bureau. The 42-year-old CEO said he and Redbird Capital Partners, the private equity firm partnering with Skydance on the deal, “represent fresh leadership” that has the “vision and experience” needed to guide Paramount in the years ahead.
The Skydance team also worked to temper concerns over the deal. “We refuted erroneous claims” about “Chinese influence” on the new Paramount, the filing said, with Ellison and his team noting Tencent, the Chinese tech and media conglomerate, would own less than 5% of the new company. Tencent’s small slice, Skydance pointed out in the meeting, would grant it “no ability to influence” Paramount.
“Rather, we made clear that Mr. Ellison will lead New Paramount with a talented team of executives focused on American storytelling,” the filing said.
Ellison also noted Skydance was committed to promoting “non-discrimination and equal employment” at the new company — a commitment that comes after it was reported in April the FCC was looking for diversity, equity and inclusion programs to be ditched in order for the deal to be approved.
The meeting between Ellison and Carr comes during a news-filled week on the Skydance-Paramount front. Notably, on Thursday, CBS canceled “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert”; CBS said it was “purely a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night,” and had nothing to do with Colbert’s frequent criticism of President Trump.
Some fans and Democratic politicians questioned the cancelation and wondered if it was done simply to help the Skydance-Paramount deal close.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren on Thursday night questioned whether Colbert’s canceling was tied to his criticism of his network and the president, saying “America deserves to know if his show was canceled for political reasons.” California Sen. Adam Schiff, who was Colbert’s guest on Thursday night, echoed Warren’s concerns, saying the public deserves to know if the show was dropped for “political reasons.”
President Trump, meanwhile, was happy with the news.
“I absolutely love that Colbert got fired. His talent was even less than his ratings,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post on Friday morning. “I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next. Has even less talent than Colbert!”
Looking ahead, the Skydance-Paramount deal has a deadline of Oct. 5, 2025 to get regulatory approval.
