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Paramount kills ad blasting Ellison and merger deal

James Rodriguez 0 comments 8 min read
Paramount kills ad blasting Ellison and merger deal

Paramount Skydance blocked a 30-second commercial from airing during Sunday's Ultimate Fighting Championship broadcast, rejecting the spot on grounds of conflict of interest after the Freedom of the Press Foundation submitted it for placement on Paramount+.

The ad, which would have cost roughly $300,000 to run, targeted David Ellison, the chief of Paramount Skydance and son of billionaire Larry Ellison, along with the company's proposed merger with Warner Bros Discovery. The spot criticized the network's leadership for what it called capitulation to Trump while referencing recent turmoil at CBS' 60 Minutes program.

"Instead of defending press freedom, CBS' billionaire owners cut deals and caved to Trump," the rejected ad stated. It went on to invoke the departure of a 60 Minutes journalist who claimed the network had demanded "falsehoods and bias to appease Trump" and warned of potential threats to CNN, HBO and other outlets should Ellison proceed with acquisitions in that space.

The rejection came Friday afternoon, just two days before the UFC event was scheduled to air. A Paramount sales representative notified the Foundation's ad buyer that the creative material amounted to "a conflict of interest" and therefore could not be approved. The exchange was visible in emails reviewed by the Guardian.

Seth Stern, chief of advocacy for the Freedom of the Press Foundation, called out Paramount for suppressing the message. "Ellison has already shown his cards on editorial independence, but, in case there was any doubt, his company has now declined to air a straightforward message about what his proposed takeover of CNN, HBO, and other outlets would mean for press freedom," Stern said. "Instead, it censored it."

Stern added that Ellison's refusal to allow criticism of himself, his company, or Trump to appear on his own network underscores broader concerns. "These antics are bad for press freedom, bad for the public, and bad for Paramount," he stated, citing recent challenges facing CBS under Ellison's leadership.

The Foundation plans to run the ad on its own website opposing the merger. The deal received approval from Donald Trump's Department of Justice on Friday but continues to face regulatory examination internationally.

Author James Rodriguez: "Paramount's reflexive rejection of the ad only amplifies the very concerns the ad was trying to raise."

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