Paramount has acquired startup The Free Press for about US$150 million, appointing its founder Bari Weiss as editor-in-chief of CBS News. Photo by PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images files

Paramount has acquired startup The Free Press for about US$150 million, appointing its founder Bari Weiss as editor-in-chief of CBS News, the century-old broadcaster once considered a bastion of journalism.

The cash and stock deal that will be paid over time gives Weiss, who has railed against the mainstream media, editorial control of CBS News, which has been at odds with U.S. President Donald Trump over the past year, culminating in a US$16 million legal settlement with Paramount.

The acquisition marks the first major deal under Paramount’s new owner, David Ellison, the son of Oracle Corp. f

See Full Page