Paramount Considering Settlement In Trump’s Lawsuit Over CBS Interview

Paramount Global is in talks to settle a $10 billion lawsuit filed by President Donald Trump, who alleges that CBS News manipulated an interview with Kamala Harris during the 2024 election season. The lawsuit claims the network intentionally edited Harris’ responses to mislead viewers, prompting Trump’s legal team to pursue damages for what they call “election interference.”

At the center of the dispute is an October 60 Minutes interview with Harris. Trump’s attorneys argue that CBS deceptively replaced a long-winded, incoherent response from Harris with a polished and entirely different answer on Face the Nation. CBS defended its decision, asserting that their selection process was standard editorial practice and not meant to be misleading.

Paramount’s chairwoman, Shari Redstone, is reportedly interested in settling the case, particularly as her company navigates a merger with Skydance Media. The deal requires approval from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which is now led by Trump-appointed Chairman Brendan Carr. Some insiders speculate that resolving the lawsuit could ease regulatory scrutiny over the merger.

Within CBS, news executives and journalists have pushed back against settlement discussions, arguing that caving to Trump’s legal challenge would weaken the press’s independence. 60 Minutes producer Bill Owens and CBS News president Wendy McMahon are said to be against the move, believing it could set a dangerous precedent.

Legal analysts have largely dismissed Trump’s lawsuit as meritless, pointing to First Amendment protections that allow news organizations editorial discretion. However, the potential financial and regulatory impact on Paramount has made the case more complex. The FCC has already requested that CBS turn over the raw footage of the Harris interview, further escalating the situation.

Trump has successfully reached legal settlements with other media giants in recent months. Disney and ABC agreed to resolve a lawsuit involving journalist George Stephanopoulos’ inaccurate statements about a legal case involving Trump, while Meta paid $22 million to settle claims related to his deplatforming. Whether Paramount follows the same path remains uncertain.

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