Media Turmoil

In Sheep’s Clothing?

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Article in Status by Oliver Darcy 8/12/26

Headline:  “Ellison’s CNN Board Game”

Subhead: “Paramount is floating an oversight board to safeguard CNN’s independence under Ellison ownership—but inside the network, staffers tell Status that they aren’t buying it.”

On Wednesday, by way of The Wall Street Journal, Paramount floated creating an editorial board to oversee CNN. In theory, the board would safeguard the news organization’s independence, should David Ellison be successful in his odyssey to acquire the outlet’s parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery.

Read the full article at:

https://www.status.news/p/cnn-board-david-ellison-paramount

Paid, Can’t Media Play Now

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Headline: ” Top Forbes editor reportedly fired after receiving $6m from business associate”

Subhead: “Randall Lane left his job last month after accepting money from founder of firm that does business with magazine”

“The top editor of Forbes left his job last month and was reportedly dismissed for accepting $6m from the founder of a firm that does business with the magazine.

“The New York Times reported this week that Randall Lane was paid by RJ Shook, whose company, Shook Research, worked with Forbes since 2016 to publish rankings of wealth advisers. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/aug/13/forbes-editor-fired

Media Merger Will be Questioned

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Article in Raw Story by Matthew Chapman, 8/11/26

Headline:  ” ‘Be prepared’: MAGA-friendly media giant warned over sketchy merger”

“Democrats are gearing up to grill Paramount Skydance over its blockbuster $110 billion bid to swallow Warner Bros. Discovery — a merger that would put CNN under the thumb of the same MAGA-friendly executive who has overseen the controversial hollowing out of CBS. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.rawstory.com/paramount-skydance/

FCC Moving Further Right

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Article in Poynter by Tom Jones, 8/11/26

Headline:  “Opinion | Trump’s FCC is poised for a further shift to the right”

Subhead:  “Trump’s latest nominee could give Republicans enough votes to conduct business without the commission’s lone Democrat”

“In a move that could further politicize the Federal Communications Commission, President Donald Trump has nominated Danielle Thumann Severs, a longtime aide to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, to fill one of the agency’s two vacant seats.

“Axios’ Sara Fischer writes, ‘If confirmed by the Senate, Thumann Severs would make it much easier for the Republican-led FCC to hold and pass votes unilaterally without any Democratic friction’. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.poynter.org/commentary/2026/trump-nominated-danielle-thumann-severs-fcc/

FCC Creating Media Monopoly?

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Article in The Guardian by Jeremy Barr, 7/8/26

Headline:  “FCC scraps limit on local TV ownership in win for media conglomerates”

Subhead:  “The 2-1 vote along party lines repealed ‘national cap’ that served as a key check on consolidation of the TV industry”

“In a historic vote on Thursday morning, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted along party lines to overturn a key check against the consolidation of the television industry, throwing out a rule that prevented any one company from owning stations that collectively reach more than 39% of all US TV households.

“The vote is a win for television conglomerates that aim to expand their reach across the country, particularly conservative-leaning companies like Sinclair Broadcast Group and Nexstar. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/aug/06/fcc-overturns-limit-local-tv-ownership

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Article in Common Dreams by Timothy Karr, 8/6/26

Headline: “Free Press Plans to Take Carr to Court in Response to Thursday’s Unlawful Decision to Eliminate a Vital Limit on Media Consolidation”

“. . .Free Press and allies plan to appeal this unlawful decision in court.

“Congress enshrined the national ownership cap in federal law; it prohibits a single company from owning TV stations that reach more than 39 percent of the national broadcast audience. The FCC does not have the power to get rid of this limit, but Chairman Brendan Carr decided to move ahead. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.commondreams.org/newswire/free-press-plans-to-take-carr-to-court-in-response-to-thursday-s-unlawful-decision-to-eliminate-a-vital-limit-on-media-consolidation

What Will Happen to CNN?

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Article in Poynter by Tom Jones, 8/5/26

Headline:  “Opinion | David Ellison broke months of silence on CNN’s future. His biggest critics won’t be reassured.”

Subhead:  “The Paramount CEO explained his vision for CNN and CBS News in a New York Times essay — but left key concerns unanswered”

“For months, the biggest media story has been Paramount’s attempt to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery for $111 billion. . .”

“There is another concern: that Paramount, which already owns CBS News, would also take control of CNN and, many fear, shift the network to the right because of Paramount CEO David Ellison’s evidently cozy relationship with President Donald Trump. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.poynter.org/commentary/2026/david-ellison-cnn-nyt-op-ed/

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Article in The Hill by Dominick Mastrangelo, 9/5/26

Headline: “Ellison defends Paramount merger, argues he can ‘be trusted as a steward of CNN“

“Media executive David Ellison is defending Paramount’s bid to purchase Warner Brothers Discovery and defending himself against accusations of implementing political bias at his media properties. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://thehill.com/homenews/media/6007503-media-exec-denies-political-bias/

Late Night TV Disappearing?

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Article in AP by Maria Sherman, 8/5/26

Headline:  “Space for music on late-night TV has dwindled. New media seeks to offer an alternative”

“When CBS ended ‘The Late Show With Stephen Colbert’ earlier this year, it also shuttered the program’s robust music offerings — a major blow for artists whose television platform was already dwindling. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://apnews.com/article/late-night-television-musical-performances-55763d0c6170c9b645290582efb4219f

Running from a WaPo Crash?

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Article in Status by Natalie Korach. 8/2/26

Headline:  “The Post’s Opinion Parting”

Subhead:  “Days before his abrupt exit from The WaPo, Adam O’Neal was privately boasting that he had pushed the Opinion section further to the right—raising new questions about what really drove his departure.”

In the days leading up to his shocking exit last week, Adam O’Neal gave no indication he was on his way out as The Washington Post’s Opinion editor. In recent private conversations, Status has learned, he struck precisely the opposite tone, sounding triumphant and boasting that he had pushed the paper’s storied opinion section further to the right. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.status.news/p/adam-oneal-washington-post-opinion-exit

WaPo Slowly Going Under?

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Article in The Guardian by Jeremy Barr, 7/31/26

Headline:  “Washington Post’s opinion editor resigns after just one year in role:

Subhead:  “Adam O’Neal did not give reason for his departure at end of August in another major shakeup at US publication”

“The Washington Post had realized a state of relative calm in the five months since the paper was turned upside down in February, when nearly half the newsroom was laid off and its unpopular publisher, Will Lewis, abruptly resigned.

“But on Friday, staffers were shocked to find out that Adam O’Neal, a millennial hired last year to lead its opinion section, was already leaving. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/jul/31/washington-post-opinion-editor-resigns-adam-oneal

ABC Persecuted?

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Article in The New Republic by Sophie Jager, 7/30/26

Headline:  “ABC Accuses Trump’s FCC of Trying to Censor the Whole Media Industry”

Subhead:  “ABC fired back at the Federal Communications Commission, accusing the agency of “attempted censorship” and “retaliation.”

“ABC accused the Federal Communications Commission Thursday of “attempted censorship” and a clear “retaliation” effort meant to send a message to every other media company in the country.

“The Administration has openly and repeatedly called for the revocation of ABC’s licenses, because it dislikes the content and viewpoints expressed on ABC network programs,” ABC wrote in a fiery 119-page regulatory filing to the agency. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://newrepublic.com/post/213787/abc-trump-fcc-censorship-media-industry

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Article in Reuters by David Shepardson, 7/30/26

Headline: “ABC says FCC seeks to intimidate network over news coverage”

“. . .Walt Disney-owned, ​ABC said on Thursday that the Federal Communications Commission’s threat to revoke the network’s broadcast licenses is ‌part of an unprecedented campaign of intimidation over broadcast content the Trump administration dislikes.

“ABC said that the Trump administration agency’s nearly unprecedented decision to order an early license review of the eight Disney-owned ABC stations is a warning from the government to other media companies. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.reuters.com/world/abc-says-fcc-seeks-intimidate-network-over-coverage-2026-07-30/