Paramount CEO David Ellison vows to maintain CNN’s editorial independence after takeover amid staff fears

Paramount CEO David Ellison on Thursday insisted CNN’s editorial independence will be "maintained" after he takes control of the network and offered a glimpse into what type of audience he hopes it will attract. 

Ellison, who is set to run CNN when Paramount's purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery becomes official, has frightened many employees of the cable news network. Ellison has a close relationship with President Donald Trump and has angered liberals for installing Bari Weiss as editor-in-chief of CBS News. Now CNN staffers are worried about a potential headcount reduction, along with the editorial direction of the network once Ellison takes over, but their soon-to-be boss attempted to calm the waters during an interview with CNBC. 

"CNN is an incredible brand with an incredible team, and we absolutely believe in the independence that needs to be maintained, obviously, for those incredible journalists, and we want to support that going forward," Ellison said on CNBC. 

Paramount CEO David Ellison on Thursday insisted CNN’s editorial independence will be "maintained" after he takes control of the network. (Charly Triballeau/AFP via Getty Images)

"CNN and CBS News are brands that we also really want to be a part of transitioning to streaming, so that consumers have the choice. If they want to watch our incredible news brands on broadcast, they can do that," he added. "If they want to watch on cable, they can do that. But we also want to create a world where, if they want to watch on streaming, they can do that, and we can really meet consumers where they are." 

Ellison said he planned to "invest in the news business," and the transaction will be a "positive" for both CBS News and CNN. 

Later in the interview, CNBC’s David Faber noted there is "a fear" that CNN will become "more beholden to the Trump administration" under Ellison’s leadership. 

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David Ellison attends President Donald Trump's State of the Union address during a Joint Session of Congress at the U.S. Capitol on Feb. 24, 2026. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

"Editorial independence will actually be maintained. It’s maintained at CBS, it’ll be maintained at CNN," Ellison said. 

"Really, who we want to talk to is the 70% of Americans, around the world, that identify as center-left, that's center-right, and we want to be in the truth business," he continued. "We want to be in the trust business, and that’s not going to change."

CNN has largely embraced anti-Trump programming for much of the last decade, and the president has responded by publicly criticizing the network on a regular basis. Last year, The Wall Street Journal reported that Ellison told Trump officials that he'd make sweeping changes to CNN if he became its owner. 

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CNN staffers are concerned that David Ellison has a cozy relationship with President Donald Trump. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Last week, a CNN insider told Fox News Digital the mood was "horrific" inside the network after it became clear that Ellison would take control. 

In December, Warner Bros. announced it had reached a deal with Netflix to buy the Hollywood studio and HBO for $83 billion, prompting Paramount to launch a $108 billion hostile takeover bid for the entire company, including all of its cable assets like CNN, which would have been spun off into a separate company under the Netflix deal.

Paramount's revised offer raised WBD's value to $31 per share, putting the company's valuation at $111 billion. Paramount also agreed to pay a $2.8 billion termination fee to Netflix. 

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