Thursday, July 03, 2025

Paramount accused of bribery as it settles Trump lawsuit

CBS owner Paramount has reached a $16 million settlement with President Donald Trump over his claim that 60 Minutes deceptively manipulated a pre-election interview with Kamala Harris. Trump's lawsuit has been widely described as frivolous, but Paramount seemed motivated to settle because its pending $8.4 billion merger with Skydance needed regulatory approval from the Trump administration.

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... n a statement provided to Ars today, Paramount said it "has reached an agreement in principle to resolve the lawsuit filed by President Trump and Representative [Ronny] Jackson in the Northern District of Texas and a threatened defamation action concerning a separate 60 Minutes report."

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) called for a bribery investigation into Paramount. "With Paramount folding to Donald Trump at the same time the company needs his administration's approval for its billion-dollar merger, this could be bribery in plain sight," she said in a statement today. "Paramount has refused to provide answers to a congressional inquiry, so I'm calling for a full investigation into whether or not any anti-bribery laws were broken."

Sens. Warren, Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) previously told Paramount Chair Shari Redstone in a letter that settling the lawsuit could violate the federal bribery law making it "illegal to corruptly give anything of value to public officials to influence an official act."

NPR reported that "Trump declared victory in holding 'the Fake News media accountable for their wrongdoing and deceit,' according to a spokesperson for his legal team, who said Paramount and CBS had no choice but to settle.

'President Trump will always ensure that no one gets away with lying to the American People as he continues on his singular mission to Make America Great Again.'" ...


#1 | Posted by LampLighter at 2025-07-03 01:50 PM

@#1 ... 'President Trump will always ensure that no one gets away with lying to the American People ...

The Trump admin should collectively look in a mirror, especially Pres trump.

#2 | Posted by LampLighter at 2025-07-03 01:51 PM

Pres Trump's FCC ... you pay money to Pres Trump and we'll settle the lawsuit.

Yeah, "bribe" seems to be appropriate.

Much like a mob boss ...

#3 | Posted by LampLighter at 2025-07-03 09:30 PM

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