Skydance chief David Ellison met with FCC Chairman Brendan Carr earlier this week as the entertainment executive seeks to complete FCC approval for his company’s acquisition of Paramount Global, The Hollywood Reporter has learned.
Ellison met with Carr, his chief of staff Greg Watson, and Ben Arden, special counsel in the Office of the Bureau Chief of the Media Bureau, on Tuesday, July 15.
As part of that meeting, Ellison also “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,” according to an ex parte filing Skydance submitted to the FCC.
The meeting comes as the FCC appears to be nearing a decision on the transfer of CBS broadcast licenses, as organizations like the Teamsters and Center for American Rights plead their case for what concessions the FCC should seek. Last week, representatives for the CBS Television Network Affiliates Association met with the FCC to push for guarantees related to local resources. The commitment to local also came up in the meeting.
“With respect to the Transaction’s significant public interest benefits, we explained the Ellison family and RedBird represent fresh leadership with the vision and experience needed to drive New Paramount’s long-term growth in the face of the challenges presented by today’s media landscape, all while preserving and enhancing the legacy and broad reach of both the national CBS television network and the company’s 28 owned-and-operated local television stations,” the filing said.
As THR previously noted, the question of DEI also appears to have come up in the meeting, with the FCC requiring any company seeking to get a deal done to agree to end any support for such programs. The filing noted Skydance’s “commitment to promoting non-discrimination and equal employment opportunity at New Paramount, ensuring the company is fully compliant with law,” suggesting that it is prepared to follow that precedent, which has been agreed to by T-Mobile, Verizon, and other companies under FCC review.
And Ellison addressed concerns that some companies had made about a stake that the Chinese company Tencent has in the company, noting that it is a non-voting, passive stake that will be equal to less than 5 percent of the company’s equity post-deal.
“We made clear that Mr. Ellison will lead New Paramount with a talented team of executives focused on American storytelling, and that RedBird’s investment in New Paramount will not involve any participation by any Chinese entity or individual,” the filing says.
Paramount has been among the most-closely watched media companies in the world over the past few weeks, following the company’s $16 million settlement with President Trump. A shock decision to cancel the Late Show with Stephen Colbert made this week has only propelled that chatter.
Ellison’s meeting with the FCC suggests that the company’s future, one way or the other, will be decided soon, and that he is preparing to make changes if and when he and his partners at RedBird take control.
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