Paramount Skydance has refuted a report alleging that Larry and David Ellison promised the Trump administration they would overhaul CNN as part of the company's acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD). A spokesperson for Paramount stated that "no commitments from either David or Larry Ellison … regarding the future of CNN or any other news property, other than the goal to deliver truth-based journalism" were made, echoing a statement previously provided to The Wall Street Journal.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison privately informed then-President Trump that Paramount could potentially reshape CNN if the company successfully acquired WBD. The report, citing individuals familiar with the matter, suggested that both Trump and Ellison perceived CNN as having a conservative bias.
The Justice Department recently approved Paramount Skydance's $81 billion acquisition of WBD, a decision that reportedly proceeded despite reservations from some antitrust staff. A White House spokesperson stated that President Trump maintained neutrality throughout the WBD bidding process.
RedBird Capital founder Gerry Cardinale, whose firm partnered with Skydance on the acquisition, sought to temper speculation about immediate changes at CNN. Cardinale expressed strong support for CNN CEO Mark Thompson, calling him a "phenomenal leader," and indicated that he and David Ellison are "huge believers" in the network. He suggested a more measured approach, stating, "I think one of the things … I’m going to suggest that we do is we slow it down a bit, and we pace this out, and we just sort of get in there a bit and understand it and then figure out how we can add value."
Cardinale also declined to endorse speculation about specific individuals, such as Bari Weiss, potentially overseeing news operations post-merger. He emphasized that while media businesses require change, the focus would be on understanding the existing structure and listening before implementing any modifications.
The Wall Street Journal report also detailed the relationship between Larry Ellison and Trump, noting significant contributions from the Oracle billionaire to a nonprofit supporting Trump's 2024 campaign, as well as donations to Trump-aligned groups. These ties have coincided with Oracle's involvement in the administration's Stargate artificial intelligence initiative and its participation in the process for TikTok's U.S. operations.
David Ellison's proximity to the president was also noted during the regulatory approval process for the Paramount Skydance acquisition. Paramount previously agreed to pay $16 million to settle a lawsuit filed by Trump against CBS News over the editing of a "60 Minutes" interview. The Federal Communications Commission approved the Skydance-Paramount merger shortly after this settlement.
Sources indicated that David Ellison became frustrated with the prolonged settlement negotiations and communicated this to Paramount director Barbara Byrne. Byrne, however, stated that she informed the company's board and legal counsel of the conversation, asserting there was "no intent to transmit information, intervene, or collude in the settlement."