Paramount Skydance Acquires The Free Press, Names Bari Weiss As Chief Editor Of CBS News

Paramount Skydance Corp. (PSKY) on Monday announced a deal to acquire The Free Press, an online news site founded by Bari Weiss.

The company also appointed Weiss as the editor-in-chief of CBS News, with the company’s CEO, David Ellison, stating that Weiss will report directly to him, and that The Free Press will maintain its own independent brand and operations.

Paramount Skydance shares were down 0.84% in Monday’s opening trade. Retail sentiment on Stocktwits around the company trended in the ‘bearish’ territory.

“Bari is a proven champion of independent, principled journalism, and I am confident her entrepreneurial drive and editorial vision will invigorate CBS News,” said Ellison, while adding that this is a part of Paramount’s larger vision of modernizing content and the way it connects to audiences globally.

According to the company’s announcement, The Free Press registered an 82% increase in its revenue in the last 12 months, while subscribers grew 86% to 1.5 million, with more than 11% of these being paid subscribers.

Detailing Weiss’s role at CBS News, the company stated that she will shape the network’s editorial policies and its reportage of news. Paramount also stated that The Free Press will lift its paywall from October 6 through October 12, giving registered users access to all of the publication’s content, including videos and livestreams.

In July, Paramount reached a $16 million settlement in a lawsuit brought by President Donald Trump, accusing the company’s CBS News network of election interference over a ‘60 Minutes’ interview with the then-Vice President, Kamala Harris, who was running for president.

A little over three weeks later, Paramount’s merger with Skydance was approved by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). In August, Ellison was appointed as the CEO of the merged entity, Paramount Skydance.

PSKY stock is up 81% year-to-date and 80% over the past 12 months.

Also See: Verizon Announces Former PayPal CEO Dan Schulman As New Chief Executive

For updates and corrections, email newsroom[at]stocktwits[dot]com.

Share

·

Add us on