Paramount’s Warner Bros Discovery bid faces conflict of interest concerns

Warner Bros Discovery’s future is in the spotlight amid a hostile bid by Paramount-Skydance to take over the storied media conglomerate that owns CBS, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon and major movie studios, days after it agreed to a deal with streaming giant Netflix.

Paramount put in a $108bn bid, compared to Netflix’s $82.7bn. Netflix’s move came with widespread antitrust concern, with progressives like Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren saying it would limit access for consumers and filmmakers in Hollywood. The White House also said it would watch the deal with heavy scrutiny.
Paramount’s bid for Warner Bros Discovery, however, was undercut by a slew of conflicts of interest and connections to the administration of United States President Donald Trump, and accompanying concerns about freedom of expression.

Those come in addition to recent changes at CBS News, where a conservative opinion writer has been brought in as the top boss, and there is pressure on coverage critical of Trump, including by late-night show hosts.

Kushner conflict
One of the sources of funds for Paramount’s bid is Jared Kushner’s investment firm Affinity Partners, alongside financing from both Saudi and Qatari sovereign wealth funds. Kushner is married to Trump’s daughter, Ivanka, and served in an advisory role during the first Trump administration.

“If you were teaching a class at business school on conflicts of interest, this would be Exhibit A,” Nell Minow, chair of Portland, Maine-based ValueEdge Advisors, told the Reuters news agency.