Donald Trump has been rubbing his hands for days, anticipating that CNN, one of his informational nemeses, will become a branch of Fox, his main propaganda outlet, under the Ellison family empire. Larry (the father) and David (the son) are both devoted to the President of the United States, and they own Paramount Skydance, which is expected to soon finalize the procedures to acquire the legendary Warner-Discovery studio for $110 billion, along with the conglomerate of companies it houses, such as HBO and CNN.
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That deal already has the blessing of the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), but the process does not seem entirely closed. At least that is the intention of twelve U.S. states, under Democratic government, which on Monday filed a lawsuit to block the agreement, considered the most serious challenge to one of the largest media and entertainment mergers in history. According to the plaintiffs, this union would harm movie theaters, damage the entertainment industry, and the citizens themselves when consuming news and entertainment.
The lawsuit, whose signatories include California Attorney General Rob Bonta and New York Attorney General Letitia James, was filed in a federal district court in northern California. The states allege that the operation violates federal antitrust law, specifically Section 7 of the Clayton Antitrust Act, which prohibits mergers that reduce competition and create monopolies.
Joining those two powerful states in the legal claim were Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, and Washington.
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Bonta, the driving force behind the case, said in a statement that the operation would lead to “higher prices, lower quality, and less content for movies and television, harming movie theaters, basic cable TV distributors, and ultimately the public, both on their home sofas and in movie theater seats across the United States.
“This merger would destroy competition, creating a gigantic company with unprecedented power and influence over news and entertainment worldwide. Paramount’s acquisition of Warner Bros threatens to increase costs for consumers and put jobs and businesses across the country at risk,” James insisted in another statement.
