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Trump's Iran Negotiations, Entertainment Mergers, NBA finals
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The Politics Behind the Merger Approval
At 9:28 · chapter starts 8:24
Folkenflik's most pointed observation is that this outcome was widely predicted — not because the antitrust case was open-and-shut, but because of politics. [1] — David Folkenflik "Trump has openly said he wanted CNN in the Ellisons' hands. The Ellisons took over CBS, installed a right-leaning editor, and Trump liked w…" 08:24 Trump had publicly said he wanted CNN under the Ellisons' control. Larry Ellison, the Oracle co-founder and one of the world's richest individuals, and his son David acquired Paramount's parent company last year. David Ellison installed Bari Weiss — founder of the center-right Free Press — in charge of CBS, generating significant controversy. Trump approved of the editorial direction, and his regulators followed suit. Folkenflik's verdict: the DOJ gave the merger 'the matador defense' — stepping aside and letting it through. The Ellisons' Trump alignment effectively pre-empted any meaningful antitrust scrutiny.
Trump has openly said he wanted CNN in the Ellisons' hands. The Ellisons took over CBS, installed a right-leaning editor, and Trump liked what he saw. When the regulator is the regulated's biggest fan, don't expect an antitrust fight.
The DOJ approval is the big hurdle cleared, but the FCC still needs to sign off on CBS's local stations, EU and UK regulators are reviewing, and Democratic state AGs are increasingly aggressive about taking deals like this to court.
