CNN contributor Kara Swisher vowed to leave the network if the Ellison family, whom she derided as “incompetent,” and their “handpicked minions” take over the network in the wake of Paramount’s $111 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery.
“With the CNN thing, well, you know my feelings on that,” Swisher said in a Tuesday episode of her podcast “Pivot,” with co-host Scott Galloway. “I mean, I’m leaving as soon as I can.”
The US Department of Justice has cleared the blockbuster media merger — which will combine Paramount Pictures, Paramount+, Warner Bros., HBO Max, CNN and CBS under one roof — though the deal is still awaiting approval from European Union and UK regulators.
CNN contributor Kara Swisher vowed to leave the network if the “incompetent” Ellison family and their “handpicked minions” take over the channel. Getty Images for CNNCNN staffers have reportedly been panicking over the acquisition, pointing to big shakeups at CBS News under editor-in-chief Bari Weiss.
Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison put her in the role with a mandate to bring more balance to the network, prompting concern that similar changes are on the way at CNN if and when it comes under Paramount’s aegis.
During the Tuesday podcast, Galloway voiced surprise at his co-host’s assertion.
“You’ve been trying to talk me into doing s–t at CNN for 24 months!” he said.
Swisher argued “that was before” Paramount won a bidding war for CNN parent WBD, which has left it unclear whether Weiss will eventually take over editorial operations at the network or current boss Mark Thompson will keep his role.
“Let me try to outline it,” Swisher said. “I don’t want to work for the Ellisons and I don’t want to work for their handpicked minions because I think they’re incompetent.”
“And I love working with the people at CNN. I very much like Mark Thompson, and I hope they put him in charge because I think he would do a great job,” she continued.
Oracle big Larry Ellison (left) with son Paramount Skydance chief David Ellison at the Los Angeles premiere of “Star Trek Into Darkness” on May 14, 2013. Getty Images“I just don’t see any way that these people make good decisions and I don’t trust them. That’s it. I don’t want to work for tech people,” Swisher added. “I’m just not staying. There’s lots of places to go. I think TV’s great, but it’s not that great, like to put up with this s–t.”
Galloway joked that Swisher should call up longtime “60 Minutes” correspondent Leslie Stahl, who announced in a joint memo with fellow journos Bill Whitaker and Jon Wertheim that they would stay at the newsmagazine despite expressing outrage over a recent purge at the network.
Stahl told the New York Times that David Ellison personally called her and promised to respect the independence of “60 Minutes” after the network fired Scott Pelley and ousted several top producers and correspondents.
Swisher laughed at Galloway’s sarcastic suggestion to phone Stahl, saying, “I don’t think I have the power to do that.”
CNN staffers have reportedly been panicking over the Paramount Skydance-Warner Bros. Discovery acquisition. Roza Gurevich – stock.adobe.com“There’s lots of other options and I’m under contract with them until the end of the year and I’m hoping they’ll let me out early, because I don’t want to affiliate with them,” Swisher said.
“I left [Rupert] Murdoch, too. This is not a new, fresh thing for Kara Swisher to flounce out and do better. No one cares, but it says something,” she added.
In 2007, Swisher and tech journalist Walt Mossberg started the AllThingsD blog at the Wall Street Journal as an extension of the company’s annual digital conference. The pair left in 2013 to start their own site, Recode.
The Wall Street Journal and The Post are both owned by parent company News Corp.
