Ex- NYT Writer Takes Over CBS After Paramount Merger
Paramount has selected ex- NYT commentator Bari Weiss to direct CBS News, marking the most recent step by current leadership to reshape activities of one of America's leading news networks.
Paramount is also purchasing The Free Press, the online publication Weiss started after her disputed departure from the New York Times, in a agreement reported to be worth $150 million.
Ms Weiss, who has challenged broadcast media for becoming overly political, said she was eager to shape CBS, which was acquired by David Ellison in recent months as part of a broader merger with Paramount.
Profile of the New Leader
Ms Weiss, who began her professional journey at Jewish publications, is known for her support of Israel and her questioning of "cancel culture".
Beginning as a newsletter in 2021, The Free Press has attracted 1.5 million subscribers, including over 170,000 paid subscribers.
It has garnered notice for reports such as a article skeptical of NPR by one of its previous business editors, as well as an investigation of some photographs used by mainstream news outlets to showcase famine in Gaza.
Prominent authors include academic Niall Ferguson and economic thinker Tyler Cowen.
Strategic Plans
Mr Ellison said the selection of Ms Weiss as chief editor was part of a bigger effort to modernize coverage at Paramount and make CBS the "most credible name in news".
"We think the greater part of the country longs for news that is even-handed and fact-based, and we want CBS to be their home," he said.
More Change at CBS
Details of the deal were not disclosed. Paramount would not address reports that the corporation had paid $150 million in equity and currency.
Mr Ellison established his reputation as a Hollywood film producer of hit movies such as Top Gun Maverick, True Grit and World War Z.
He has said his goal is to produce reporting that is less partisan, and therefore has the potential to engage all audiences.
His takeover of Paramount was authorized by regulators this summer, after the company committed to pay $16 million to settle a lawsuit.
To secure clearance of the transaction, Mr Ellison pledged to install an impartial arbitrator at CBS to examine concerns of partiality and vowed to oversight bodies that content would showcase a diversity of perspectives.
He further said CBS's long-running political show "Face the Nation" would discontinue air edited interviews.
Collaboration Information
CBS News has a partnership agreement with an international broadcaster, meaning news content including recorded segments can be exchanged.
In a note declaring the deal, Ms Weiss said she believed in the Paramount leader and his leadership team.
"They are doubling down because they support news. Because they have bravery. Because they cherish this country. And because they recognize, as we do, that America cannot succeed without shared information, universal realities, and a common reality," she wrote.
