Movies

Paramount adds three new board members amid Trump troubles and FCC review

BBG News

Despite the ongoing attempts to sell it to Skydance Media falling short, Paramount Global is expanding its modest board by appointing three fresh directors. The company’s board has experienced turmoil and high turnover since the beginning of last year due to internal drama.

In simpler terms, the New York company, burdened with debt, currently has just five board members. One of them is Shari Redstone, a controlling shareholder who also serves as chairwoman. The Redstone family owns about 77% of Paramount’s voting shares, providing Shari with significant influence due to this large ownership stake.

On Monday, Paramount requested shareholders to vote for seven directors in their annual meeting on July 2nd. The candidates include Viacom’s Sumner Redstone and three newcomers: attorney Mary Boies (a partner at her husband David Boies’ law firm); Charles E. Ryan, a Silicon Valley venture capitalist; and Roanne Sragow Licht, a former Massachusetts judge.

Besides Redstone, the incumbent board members Linda M. Griego, Susan Schuman, and Barbara M. Byrne are set to seek re-election once more.

Or:

Apart from Redstone, Linda M. Griego, Susan Schuman, and Barbara M. Byrne, who have been on the board for a while, plan to run again in the upcoming elections.

Or:

Redstone is not the only one seeking reelection; Linda M. Griego, Susan Schuman, and Barbara M. Byrne – all longtime members of the board – will also be standing for re-election.

Each of these options conveys the original meaning while using more natural and easy-to-read language.

Board member Judith A. McHale has decided to step down.

Hollywood Inc.

For Subscribers

Trump, ‘60 Minutes’ and corruption allegations put Paramount on edge with sale less certain

Three Democratic senators in the House of Representatives have expressed concern that making any payments to Trump for favorable treatment from regulators might breach federal anti-bribery statutes. They also stated that the dealings between Paramount and Trump suggest a potential risk of corruption and unethical behavior.

Since the company’s sale to David Ellison’s Skydance Media was announced last July, it has faced a string of difficulties.

The corporation had to record a loss of $6 billion in their cable TV networks sector, which indicates once more that the movie industry is facing up to the continued decline of conventional TV businesses.

Independent director Charles Phillips stepped down from the board in October. This move followed by six months the departure of three other directors – Rob Klieger, Nicole Seligman, and Dawn Ostroff – who left unexpectedly as the committee faced difficulties in negotiating terms for Redstone’s proposed sale of Paramount.

Towards the end of October, Former President Trump submitted a lawsuit in Texas expressing his dissatisfaction with the edited version of a “60 Minutes” interview featuring then-Vice President Kamala Harris during the final stages of the election campaign. The Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Brendan Carr, who was appointed by Trump, initiated an investigation to ascertain whether the edits amounted to biased reporting or manipulation of news content.

Trump doubled the amount of damages he was seeking to $20 billion.

Hollywood Inc.

On Wednesday, shares of Paramount Global experienced a drop of up to 7%, primarily due to multiple board members departing the company and ongoing negotiations with Skydance.

Paramount is fighting off the ongoing lawsuit. Last week, legal representatives for Trump claimed that he experienced emotional distress because of the airing of “60 Minutes”.

The ambition of Redstone to resolve Trump’s lawsuit concerning the “60 Minutes” edits has caused significant rifts inside the corporation.

In my opinion, legal experts have labeled Trump’s lawsuit as baseless, while CBS News executives and other journalists view it as an attempt to extort a struggling company on the verge of having its sale to Skydance approved by the FCC. I personally don’t agree with such tactics, as they seem unethical and misuse the legal system for personal gain.

1. The uproar concerning the edits led to the resignation of two high-ranking CBS News executives, including Wendy McMahon, president of CBS News and Stations, who resigned under duress last month. Additionally, Bill Owens, executive producer of “60 Minutes,” left in April.

or

2. The controversy surrounding the edits led to the resignation of two prominent executives at CBS News, with Wendy McMahon, president of CBS News and Stations, stepping down last month amidst pressure. In April, Bill Owens, the executive producer of “60 Minutes,” also left.

Redstone has expressed her dissatisfaction with CBS News’ coverage of the Israel-Hamas war.

Recently, three Democratic U.S. senators cautioned Redstone about potential bribery accusations if they made a large payment to Trump as part of an attempt to expedite the FCC’s evaluation of the Skydance acquisition. It has been reported by The Wall Street Journal that Paramount proposed a $15 million payment to Trump to settle the lawsuit, but he chose not to accept it.

Approximately eleven months have passed since Paramount reached an agreement for Skydance to purchase it, a transaction valued at around 8 billion dollars. This deal will provide Paramount with 1.5 billion dollars in fresh capital to help strengthen its financial position.

Hollywood Inc.

For Subscribers

Shari Redstone was poised to make Paramount a Hollywood comeback story. What happened?

Instead of helping Paramount regain its status as a dominant force in the industry during Redstone’s leadership, his time at the helm was marked by errors and disappointments.

Paramount hasn’t adjusted its prediction regarding the deal closure timeline yet, however, the legal deadline falls in early October.

In its latest disclosure, the company outlined the remuneration packages for its key executives. The top three executives collectively received a compensation of approximately $148 million. This includes former CEO Bob Bakish, who was paid a total of $87 million. Co-CEO George Cheeks earned $22.2 million. The other two co-CEOs, Brian Robbins and Chris McCarthy, each received around $19.6 million and $19.5 million respectively, as stated in the official filing.

Read More

2025-06-03 03:31

Previous post Top 10 Naruto Figures You Must See and Where to Buy Them Now
Next post AFL WAG Sophie Cachia reveals plans to marry her AFLW star girlfriend Madison Prespakis – and confirms whether she is planning on having another baby