Free Press: Judge's Approval of the Paramount Mega-Merger Is a Call to Action Against Billionaire Control of the Media

OAKLAND — On Wednesday, Federal Court Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín approved the proposed consent decree that Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros. Discovery struck with 12 state attorneys general to settle their case against the companies’ $111 billion mega-merger.

Last week, Free Press and other core partners in the coalition had filed an amicus brief calling for the federal court to reject the consent decree and prevent the merger from going forward, citing its failure to remedy harms to competition and to the very people that state attorneys general are supposed to represent.

Free Press Co-CEO Jessica J. González said:

“Obviously, we’re disappointed by the decision, and by our elected officials’ capitulation that made it possible. Dangerous mega-mergers like this demonstrate the urgent need to enforce the antitrust laws instead of caving in. We must do more to prevent media conglomerates and their billionaire owners from amassing so much power to control the narrative and enrich themselves, while they’re twisting U.S. media and politics to crush competing viewpoints and win merger approvals. 

“Multi-billionaires like the Ellisons, Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos are strategically buying up media outlets to silence dissenting voices, undermine accountability and align themselves with corrupt authoritarians and political opportunists. 

“If this trend of consolidation continues, we will be left searching dominant media outlets in vain for news and information that challenges the powerful and stands up for people who are struggling to pay monthly bills, put food on the table and engage in local civic life. We’ve lost the fight against this specific merger for now, but we will continue to fight against future deals. We will also work hand in hand with our partners to build better models for community media, local journalism, and civic information outside of tech-oligarch control. 

“The joining of massive entities like Paramount and Warner Bros. will hike consumer prices. It will harm media diversity in all dimensions, and further homogenize the types of television and films being made in the United States. And it will put out of work thousands more people in the news and entertainment industries, as well as in the trades and small businesses that support these productions. 

“The good news is that the fight against media consolidation is growing, as more and more people are ready to stand up for a more competitive, diverse and inclusive media system — something the state attorneys general failed to do when they caved to pressure from the Ellisons. Free Press and the Block the Merger coalition are continuing to build a powerful, popular movement against Big Media control. We’re not going away until we have a media that serves everyone, and not just a handful of power-grubbing billionaires and politicians.”