SPECIAL EDITION - Paramount–Warner Merger: An Uncertain Future for CNN

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💼 SPECIAL EDITION: PARAMOUNT ACQUIRES WARNER
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• Paramount–Warner: An uncertain future for CNN; the shadow of Trump looms
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/27/business/media/cnn-paramount-david-ellison.html

Photo by Rubaitul Azad on Unsplash

My analysis:

• CNN’s future is at stake because the new owners, the Ellison family, are close to Donald Trump

• The purchase of Warner by Paramount will trigger economies of scale, meaning major layoffs

• CNN, often critical of Trump, may shift rightward and become less progressive

• Paramount, already the owner of CBS News, recently installed a new editor‑in‑chief who has upended the newsroom

• CNN’s mission will change, but its influence has already been reduced by Fox News, influencers/podcasters, and conservative news channels

  ***

Why CNN’s future hangs on the Warner–Paramount deal
Source: Les Échos
URL: https://www.lesechos.fr/tech-medias/medias/video-pourquoi-lavenir-de-cnn-est-en-jeu-avec-le-deal-warner-paramount-2218495

CNN–Paramount–Warner Bros merger: what the new strategic shift reveals. CNN’s director tries to calm the storm
Source: Deadline
URL: https://deadline.com/2026/02/cnn-paramount-warner-bros-merger-1236738177/

Departing CBS News producer claims political bias as Paramount poised to buy Warner Bros
Source: The Guardian
URL: https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/feb/27/cbs-news-political-bias-paramount-warner-bros

• Jake Tapper learns on air about the potential takeover of CNN
https://variety.com/2026/film/news/cnn-jake-tapper-paramount-buying-wbd-live-on-air-1236674342/

• Official – Warner Bros signs $110‑billion deal with Paramount
https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/sustainable-finance-reporting/warner-bros-signs-110-billion-deal-with-paramount-its-executive-discloses-2026-02-27/?

• Netflix withdraws its offer for Warner Bros Discovery
https://www.semafor.com/newsletter/02/26/2026/netflix-walks-away-from-83b-wbd-takeover

• David Ellison beats Netflix in the bidding war: how the political deal came together
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-02-27/how-david-ellison-outlasted-netflix-in-the-warner-bros-bidding-war

• Jack Dorsey and the new era of white‑collar layoffs
https://www.businessinsider.com/jack-dorsey-block-memo-new-era-white-collar-layoffs-2026-2

🎨 ARTS, CULTURE & MEDIA IN CANADA
🔵🎭

• Québec culture searches for new momentum
https://www.lapresse.ca/arts/2026-02-28/en-quete-de-solutions/la-culture-quebecoise-en-quete-d-elan.php

• Inside the K‑Pop machine through a Québec lens
https://www.lapresse.ca/arts/la-presse-en-coree-du-sud/une-que-pop-inspiree-de-la-k-pop/2026-02-28/au-coeur-de-la-machine-k-pop-a-seoul.php

• La Presse searches for solutions in the Canadian media landscape
https://www.lapresse.ca/arts/chroniques/2026-02-28/la-presse-a-la-recherche-de-solutions.php

• Richard Therrien: “Why I’m taking a break from TV ratings in Canada”
https://www.lesoleil.com/arts/richard-therrien/2026/02/27/pourquoi-je-prends-une-pause-de-cotes-decoute-B7IIPGHMYRDRFLL3AMH3PUMBOU/

• Meet the new web columnist joining Salut Bonjour on TVA Network
https://www.salutbonjour.ca/2026/02/20/decouvrez-le-nouveau-chroniqueur-web-qui-sajoute-a-lequipe-de-salut-bonjour-week-end

• Québec supports 23 digital projects for written press outlets
https://www.newswire.ca/fr/news-releases/quebec-soutient-23-projets-numeriques-de-la-presse-d-information-ecrite-805741372.html

• Screens: recommendations from Le Devoir
https://www.ledevoir.com/culture/ecrans/959655/ecrans

• CISM FM celebrates its 35th anniversary in March
https://lecanalauditif.ca/actualites/cism-fetera-ses-35-ans-mars/

• Passing of André Vanasse, pillar of Québec’s literary scene
https://www.ledevoir.com/lire/959640/deces-andre-vanasse-pilier-milieu-litteraire-quebecois?

• Tout le monde en parle: guests for March 1, 2026 on CBC
https://presse.radio-canada.ca/television/14468/tout-le-monde-en-parle-les-invites-du-1er-mars-2026/

• Infoman: interview on disinformation and the Quebec Press Council
https://ici.radio-canada.ca/tele/infoman/site/segments/entrevue/2310783/desinformation-conseil-presse-quebec-jeu

• Fake Pizzagate: new investigation into the Epstein files
https://ici.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle/2232751/dossiers-epstein-faux-pizzagate-courriels?partageApp=appInfoiOS&accesVia=partage

• Vancouver police violated press freedoms, says Human Rights Commissioner
https://j-source.ca/vancouver-police-violated-press-freedoms-during-2023-decampment-says-b-c-human-rights-commissioner/

• A hundred accounts responsible for most conspiracy content in Canada
https://www.ledevoir.com/economie/techno/959661/centaine-comptes-sont-origine-majorite-contenus-conspirationnistes-canada

📰 MEDIA INDUSTRY & JOURNALISM
🟣🖋️

• Bolloré group replacing journalists with AI sparks feeling of betrayal in France
https://www.marianne.net/societe/medias/limpression-de-trahir-les-lecteurs-comment-le-groupe-bollore-remplace-les-journalistes-par-lia