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House Democrats Probe Trump’s Role in Paramount-Skydance Merger Approval

By  |  August 21, 2025

Two senior Democrats in Congress are scrutinizing whether Paramount and Skydance Media bowed to improper pressure from former President Donald Trump while seeking regulatory clearance for their $8 billion merger. According to CNBC, Reps. Jamie Raskin of Maryland and Frank Pallone of New Jersey sent a letter to David Ellison, the CEO of the newly formed Paramount Skydance Corporation, questioning whether the companies made concessions that could amount to bribery.

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    The FCC cleared the merger in late July, shortly after Paramount reached a $16 million settlement with Trump over his lawsuit against CBS News, a Paramount subsidiary. Trump had claimed that a “60 Minutes” segment was deceptively edited to favor then-rival Kamala Harris, allegations that media experts and Paramount itself dismissed as baseless. Per CNBC, the lawmakers expressed concern that the timing of the settlement suggests it may have been part of a broader effort to secure Trump’s support for the deal.

    “The settlement raises significant concerns that Donald Trump demanded and Paramount paid an illegal bribe—a $16 million payment to the President in exchange for merger approval from the FCC,” Raskin and Pallone wrote in their letter, obtained by CNBC. They added that agreeing to Trump’s claims “demonstrates an extreme disregard to anything that might stand in the way of profit.”

    The Democrats are also seeking clarity on Trump’s public statement that he expects an additional $20 million in advertising or programming commitments from the merged company. While Skydance sources have denied such a deal, the lawmakers argue that reports of multiple conversations between Ellison and Trump raise red flags. They warn that any arrangement tied to FCC approval could constitute “an offer of payment and benefits to a government official designed to achieve a specific outcome—in other words, a bribe.”

    Related: Democratic Senator Demands FCC Explain Paramount-Skydance Merger Approval

    The letter further highlights concerns over editorial independence. According to CNBC, Raskin and Pallone cited reports suggesting Skydance agreed to changes at CBS that would align with the Trump administration’s agenda, including the hiring of an ombudsman to oversee editorial decisions. They called this “a poorly disguised attempt at censoring speech.”

    The lawmakers gave Paramount two weeks to provide records of communications with Trump, the Trump Organization, the FCC, and the White House. Paramount Skydance did not respond to CNBC’s request for comment.

    At the time of the merger approval, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said Skydance had provided written commitments to promote ideological diversity in programming and framed the decision as part of a broader effort to move away from diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.

    Source: CNBC