Democrats Confront Paramount CEO Over Corporate Collusion and Trump-Backed Media Power Grab
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House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jamie Raskin demands accountability from Paramount CEO David Ellison for his secretive dealings with the Trump administration and a merger that threatens media independence and workers’ rights.
Rep. Jamie Raskin, the leading Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, has taken a bold stand against unchecked corporate power, sending a new letter to Paramount Pictures CEO David Ellison. Raskin accuses Ellison of colluding with disgraced President Donald Trump, demanding transparency about the pending acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery—a deal that could further consolidate media control in the hands of the ultra-wealthy. The correspondence, obtained by a news outlet, comes as Paramount seeks to settle a state antitrust lawsuit that has rightly halted this dangerous merger.
Raskin highlighted Ellison’s repeated stonewalling, noting his failure to respond to four previous inquiries over the past year. Citing an op-ed Ellison published in The New York Times, Raskin invited him to a transcribed interview with the committee. The letter also referenced alarming reports of “political interference” at CBS News, a Paramount-owned outlet, and a Wall Street Journal report—sourced anonymously—that Ellison allegedly promised Trump officials he would overhaul CNN if the merger succeeded.
"You have eagerly shown the president that you are going to deliver on both counts as if you are controlling organs of state media," the letter charged, exposing the dangerous convergence of corporate and authoritarian interests.
Ellison’s op-ed paid lip service to newsroom independence, but conveniently omitted any mention of Trump or the real threats to press freedom. The letter warned that a Democrat-led Judiciary Committee would investigate whether federal agencies had abused their power to push through the merger, potentially trampling First Amendment protections and undermining democracy itself.
Progressive Democrats, including Sen. Elizabeth Warren, have condemned the merger as a blatant cost-cutting scheme that would gut the bargaining power of writers, actors, and crew—further enriching corporate executives at the expense of working people. Paramount claims the transaction is pro-competitive and points to rubber-stamped approvals from the Justice Department and other regulators, but the deal remains frozen due to the state antitrust case and a separate lawsuit from the Writers Guild of America, who are fighting for fair labor conditions.
Paramount has signaled its willingness to negotiate a settlement, while California Attorney General Rob Bonta remains focused on protecting the public interest through litigation. Reports that Ellison threatened to move the company out of California if the case isn’t resolved by October were rightly called out by Bonta as corporate blackmail—an attempt to bully regulators—though Paramount’s chief legal officer tried to deny this characterization.