{"id":304168,"date":"2026-02-27T02:40:07","date_gmt":"2026-02-27T02:40:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/304168\/"},"modified":"2026-02-27T02:40:07","modified_gmt":"2026-02-27T02:40:07","slug":"cnn-ceo-urges-employees-to-not-jump-to-conclusions-about-paramount","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/304168\/","title":{"rendered":"CNN CEO Urges Employees To Not “Jump To Conclusions” About Paramount"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tWith Paramount emerging as the winning bidder<\/a> for a potential deal for Warner Bros. Discovery<\/a>, one of its prizes would be CNN<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n\tThat has triggered a new level of consternation at the network, not just because of the ever-present worries about cutbacks at a time of consolidation, but that CNN would be under the same corporate umbrella as CBS. The broadcast network\u2019s news division is undergoing a transformation since the David Ellison-run Skydance acquired Paramount<\/a> last year.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cDespite all the speculation you\u2019ve read during this process, I\u2019d suggest that you don\u2019t jump to conclusions about the future until we know more,\u201d CNN\u2019s chairman and CEO Mark Thompson wrote to employees Thursday.<\/p>\n

\n\tHe added, \u201cAnd secondly let\u2019s not forget our duty to our audience. We\u2019re still near the start of what is already an incredibly newsy year at home and abroad, one that will culminate with critical U.S. midterm elections and who knows what else. Let\u2019s continue to focus on delivering the best possible journalism to the millions of people who rely on us all around the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tCNN\u2019s Jake Tapper reported Netflix\u2019s withdrawal from the process on his show on Thursday afternoon, telling viewers, \u201cWe have some breaking news internationally that affects everybody I\u2019m looking at right now in the studio.\u201d <\/p>\n

\n\tDemocrats already are seeking answers from Ellison<\/a> on whether he made any guarantees to Donald Trump about changes to CNN, which has long been one of the president\u2019s targets.<\/p>\n

\n\tThere also are concerns about editorial direction at CNN. At CBS, Skydance committed to hiring an ombudsman to take complaints about its news coverage. A former head of a conservative think tank, Kenneth Weinstein<\/a>, was hired in that role. Ellison later tapped Bari Weiss<\/a>, founder of the center-right site The Free Press, to serve as editor in chief of CBS News. He attended Trump\u2019s State of the Union address<\/a> this week, as a guest of Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), one of the president\u2019s allies.<\/p>\n

\n\tUnder the Netflix-Warner Bros. deal, CNN and other cable networks would have ultimately been spun off into a separate entity. But Paramount\u2019s proposal calls for buying all of Warner Bros. Discovery, creating a media<\/a> giant.<\/p>\n

\n\tJim Acosta, the former CNN anchor and host who launched his own media venture, posted on X, \u201cAs I\u2019ve been warning, America now has state-compromised media. When 60 Min or CNN is in trouble, we\u2019re all in trouble. Trump has cracked the code in how to hurt the press. Free speech is now at risk. MAGA corporations must not control the news. Support independent media.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThompson\u2019s full note is below:<\/p>\n

Dear All,<\/p>\n

Many of you will have already heard and seen our reporting about today\u2019s two significant pieces of news: first that the board of our parent company Warner Bros. Discovery has decided that Paramount Skydance\u2019s offer to purchase WBD<\/a> is now the best offer in front of them, and second that Netflix has decided\u00a0not\u00a0to increase its own latest offer.\u00a0<\/p>\n

David Zaslav is holding a WBD Town Hall Friday to discuss the news \u2013 you should already have received an invitation to that. We will hold our own CNN Town Hall as soon as possible after that to discuss next steps and to answer your questions to the best of our ability.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I want to end this note with two thoughts: Despite all the speculation you\u2019ve read during this process, I\u2019d suggest that you don\u2019t jump to conclusions about the future until we know more. And secondly let\u2019s not forget our duty to our audience. We\u2019re still near the start of what is already an incredibly newsy year at home and abroad, one that will culminate with critical U.S. midterm elections and who knows what else. Let\u2019s continue to focus on delivering the best possible journalism to the millions of people who rely on us all around the world.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mark<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"With Paramount emerging as the winning bidder for a potential deal for Warner Bros. Discovery, one of its…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":304169,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[59304,27957,156,1073,111,139,69,421,437,3204,75382],"class_list":{"0":"post-304168","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-tv","8":"tag-cnn","9":"tag-electionline","10":"tag-entertainment","11":"tag-media","12":"tag-new-zealand","13":"tag-newzealand","14":"tag-nz","15":"tag-paramount","16":"tag-tv","17":"tag-warner-bros-discovery","18":"tag-wbd"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/304168","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=304168"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/304168\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/304169"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=304168"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=304168"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=304168"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}