David Ellison
b. 1983
The heir who took CBS, installed Bari Weiss, and is buying CNN.
David Ellison runs the acquisition arm of the family project: his Paramount Skydance already controls CBS, installed Bari Weiss atop CBS News, and struck a DOJ-cleared deal to buy Warner Bros. Discovery — CNN's parent. If it closes, one Trump-aligned family will own two of the three legacy 'opposition' networks.
What the record shows
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His Paramount Skydance controls CBS and installed Bari Weiss as editor-in-chief of CBS News.
FACTThe ~$150M acquisition of Weiss's Free Press (Oct. 2025) put a hand-picked editor atop a legacy network — ownership reaching directly into the newsroom.
He struck a DOJ-cleared ~$110.9B deal to buy CNN's parent, Warner Bros. Discovery.
FACTPending close (~2027 amid antitrust litigation), it would put CBS and CNN under one Trump-aligned family — the consolidation of the 'opposition.'
Every investigation that touches David
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