Paramount settles with US states in step towards merger with Warner Bros

Ellison-led Paramount will avoid daily $7m fee if the $110bn Warner Bros Merger closes by September 30.Paramount Skydance has reached a settlement with California and 11 other states that sued to block the $110bn Merger with Warner Bros Discovery, both Reuters and Bloomberg News have reported, citing sources familiar with the matter.The settlement, reported on Monday, will include independent editorial boards to oversee CNN and CBS amid concerns that political pressure could sway coverage. The lawsuits were brought by a coalition of 12 state attorneys general.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4Twelve US states sue Paramount to block Warner Bros mergerlist 2 of 4US judge orders pause on Paramount–Warner Bros mergerlist 3 of 4Paramount Skydance mulls CNN sale amid antitrust Merger challengelist 4 of 4Paramount CEO may remove operations from California over stalled mergerend of listBut free speech advocates are not convinced that will be helpful.“An independent editorial board for CNN and CBS is a weak half-measure. The fish rots from the head, and this particular fish is headed by a compromised oligarch with a history of throwing journalists under the bus to advance his business interests,” Seth Stern, director of advocacy at the Freedom of the Press Foundation, told Al Jazeera.“The editorial board actually poses its own First Amendment problems when created pursuant to a settlement with the government. It’s unclear how the attorneys general can constitutionally hold Paramount accountable if the board doesn’t do its job without themselves interfering in content – the exact problem they’re supposedly trying to solve.”Paramount Skydance is owned by tech tycoon Larry Ellison, a close ally of US President Donald Trump. The company is run by Ellison’s son, David, raising concerns the relationship could sway coverage of Trump and his policies.The settlement also includes a $30m penalty if the media giant fails to produce 30 movies per year as it had promised, according to Reuters news agency.