Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) blasted the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) late Thursday following its approval of a megamerger between entertainment giants Paramount and Skydance.
“The appearance of this ‘wink wink’ deal basically lets every other company and every other billionaire [know] that Trump is open for business,” Warren said in a video posted to social platform X.
The approval of the deal comes just days after CBS, which is owned by Paramount, announced it would end “The Late Show” with comedian Stephen Colbert, a prominent critic of President Trump. Colbert took over the show, which started more than 30 years ago, from host David Letterman in 2015 and it is now set to end in May 2026.
It also comes weeks after the company agreed to pay Trump’s presidential library $16 million to settle a lawsuit he brought against the network over a “60 Minutes” interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris last fall.
The settlement marked the latest victory for Trump against media outlets following his settlement with ABC News late last year and funding cuts to public broadcasters included in the recently signed rescissions package.
Warren, Colbert and other Democrats have alleged Paramount’s recent moves could constitute a violation of federal bribery laws.
“On top of that, this deal is bad for competition, and it could make it more expensive for you to stream your favorite TV shows or movies or sports or whatever,” the Massachusetts Democrat said.
She added, “Make no mistake, these CEOs may think that they can get away with whatever they want, but they are not immune from the law.”
