A vote later this month could put CBS and CNN, two of the leading US news networks, under the umbrella of two Jewish business leaders with long ties to Israel, Larry and David Ellison.

Shareholders of Warner Bros. Discovery, a major US media company that owns CNN, will vote on April 23 on an acquisition by David Ellison’s Paramount Skydance, CBS’s parent company.

The potential acquisition is part of a series of moves by Larry Ellison and his son David, part of an expanding media empire that has alarmed liberal newsrooms, White House critics and anti-Zionist activists.

In August 2025, David Ellison’s Skydance media firm closed a merger with Paramount, a major entertainment company that owns CBS, one of the top US news networks.

In October, Paramount acquired The Free Press, a news outlet founded by the Jewish journalist Bari Weiss, for a reported $150 million. The Free Press presents itself as a centrist alternative to the liberal-leaning mainstream media. The outlet has been critical of the media’s Israel coverage and often reports on antisemitism. Weiss was appointed the editor-in-chief of CBS News.

Last month, the combined Paramount Skydance announced a merger agreement to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery, a leading media conglomerate, for a reported $110 billion. Warner Bros. is the parent company of CNN.

Warner Bros. Discovery said last week that it will vote on the agreement during a shareholder meeting on April 23. The California attorney general and the US Department of Justice are reviewing the deal over antitrust concerns.

If approved, the acquisition will put two of the leading US news networks under the same umbrella, along with Paramount Skydance’s Nickelodeon, MTV, BET, Comedy Central and Showtime, and a host of Warner Bros. properties, including HBO, discovery , the Food Network and the Travel Channel.

Larry Ellison’s Oracle, one of the world’s largest technology firms, also owns a significant stake in TikTok’s US business operations. American Jewish leaders have blamed TikTok for allowing antisemitism to spread among young people.

If this month’s Warner Bros. Discovery acquisition goes through, the deal will put a swath of the US media landscape,........

© The Times of Israel