Paramount Global, the parent company of CBS News, said it has agreed to pay $16 million to Trump’s foundation for his future presidential library to settle the lawsuit he filed over the editing of a 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris last fall.
Paramount will also pay Trump’s legal fees, but the agreement does not include any apology or statement of regret. The agreement forces 60 Minutes to release transcripts of interviews with presidential candidates in the future, in an affront to First Amendment rights.
Paramount’s settlement appears to be directly modeled on one reached with Trump by ABC News’s parent company, the Walt Disney Co.
Paramount’s controlling owner, Shari Redstone, has billions of dollars at stake as she seeks to close a sale of the company to Skydance Media. The deal is under formal review by the Federal Communications Commission, now led by Trump’s stooge, Brendan Carr.
Skydance Media CEO David Ellison is the son of Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, whose billions are underwriting the deal for Paramount. Trump considers Ellison a friend.