Anderson Cooper, Stephen Colbert, Sean Strickland Strain Paramount
Anderson Cooper turned down an opportunity to continue working there. Stephen Colbert recently spoke out about his relationship with lawyers at the same firm. And Seth Strickland, a UFC fighter, didn’t think the league’s crucial ties to the company would suffer if he uttered some profanity and celebrity disparagement while trying to promote an upcoming bout on the conglomerate’s streaming service.
The company in question is Paramount Skydance, which owns CBS, Paramount+ and cable networks like MTV and Comedy Central. And just as the organization heads into one of the most crucial chapters in its short existence, it appears it may have talent problems.
While Paramount Skydance “may easily be able to attract talent that appeals to a MAGA base, what will be PSKY’s ability to attract talent that appeals to a larger and more profitable audience?” asked Blair Levin, a media analyst for New Street Research, in a note issued earlier this week. He sees a parallel with the events taking place at the Kennedy Center, which artists have left as President Trump has sought a heavier hand in the types of shows and events that take place there. “The dynamics of talent migration leading to customer migration and then repeating in a vicious cycle downwards could repeat itself,” he warned.
Paramount Skydance is in the midst of a seven-day “best and final offer” period in its bid to buy Warner Bros. to extricate Discovery from a pre-existing agreement to sell its studio and streaming assets to Netflix and then spin off its TV assets into a separate publicly traded company. The negotiating window with Paramount ends Monday, February 23. Netflix, which granted Warner an exemption to hold new talks with its rival, would have four days to make a counteroffer in case Paramount made a higher offer.
Although the scene took place on Wall Street, the company did not seem of paramount importance in the minds of some of its key personalities. A spokesperson for Paramount Skydance did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Anderson Cooper surprised the industry Monday by issuing a statement of his own that he planned to leave CBS News’ “60 Minutes” to focus on expanding his duties at CNN and spending more time with his young children. Still, the move is being interpreted in media circles as the result of dissatisfaction with the venerable newsmagazine’s handling in recent months, with senior executives putting pressure on the show to cut back on hard news and investigative stories. One such segment — a piece by correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi — was postponed for a few weeks by new CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss after she said it needed more response from Trump administration officials. When the story aired, it was done without edits, although some commentary was added in an introduction and an afterword.
It is extremely rare for an anchor to leave a major news program without an explanation at the ready from the news department or parent company. CBS News took nearly four hours to respond to news of Cooper’s departure — a sign that it was unexpected. CBS later said that for Cooper, “’60 Minutes’ will be here if he ever wants to return.”
Later that evening, Stephen Colbert took a closer look at the company. In his comments on February 16e program, the late-night host told viewers that network executives told him that an interview with Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico could not appear on CBS because it would conflict with new guidelines from the Trump administration’s talk show schedule on what’s known as TV’s “equal time” rule, which requires broadcast networks and radio stations to give equal time to candidates in an election after someone appears.
“I was told, in uncertain terms, that not only could I not have it on, but I couldn’t say I didn’t have it on,” Colbert said. The show then made the interview available on YouTube.
CBS revisited the matter, later noting that Colbert and his staff received “legal guidance” but were not “barred” from airing the interview. This led to another round, with Colbert responding on Tuesday, “I don’t even know what to do with this crap.”
Strickland, who has built a reputation for making outrageous statements, dropped a few more points Wednesday, hurling insults and offensive language at Bad Bunny and female athletes like Ronda Rousey. He made the comments during a media event to promote a UFC fight streaming on Paramount+ on Saturday
Paramount has not been shy about its zeal to align itself with the Trump administration. But doing so could make it harder to make money from the activities, Levin says in his research note. “By telling talent that management’s top priority is to please government officials, you can certainly direct them to entertainment platforms where management prioritizes supporting talent that knows how to attract customers,” he says.
In recent decades, much of the talent wrangling has taken place behind the scenes, but Parmount executives must realize that presenters, actors and sports reporters are increasingly feeling empowered to appear on screen and tell viewers when they are unhappy with TV life. Pat McAfee, the colorful ESPN commentator, and Rachel Maddow, the studious news analyst from MS Now, seem to have little in common. However, both have tested their media employers with blunt language on screen. That includes Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski and Chuck Todd, among others.
What gives the talent so much confidence in criticism? Perhaps the rise of social media and creator forums like newsletters and video podcasts, where telling it like it is (or at least the appearance of it) is the tone of the day. Paramount Skydance should likely expect more of the same in the coming months – even if the company doesn’t put its best foot forward to acquire a major media property.
