Status

As Skydance looks to eventually marry CNN and CBS News, the company is taking very different approaches to return-to-office mandates and employee buyouts, we have learned—which may offer hints about their futures. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/david-elli...

Simon & Schuster quietly released Matthew Cole’s book two days early, we have learned, as an explosive excerpt in Vanity Fair prompts threats from Jared Kushner’s legal team. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/jared-kush...

Alex Gibney talks to us about social media bans on his “Musk” documentary, why he’s concerned about its future at HBO, and what disturbs him the most about the world’s richest man. More in @status.news: www.status.news/p/elon-musk-...

For the second time in recent months, an alleged pollster was caught producing fake data, managing to get even further than the first. Status spoke with the people who exposed the hoax that raises troubling new questions for the media. The full story in @status.news www.status.news/p/wedgewood-...

Under White House pressure, POLITICO issued a correction to a story about Susie Wiles and Sean Hannity, an embarrassing black eye that has frustrated some staffers internally, we have learned. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/politico-k...

Election night... sponsored by DraftKings? CBS' owned stations will carry DraftKings branding through Election Night, we have learned, a sponsorship that has stirred concern inside the company. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/cbs-draftk...

As CBS News president Tom Cibrowski meets with staffers abroad, we have obtained an audio recording capturing the network's foreign editor berating a reporter in a previous role at The WSJ, raising fresh questions about her management style. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/cbs-news-s...

Christiane Amanpour announced she will exit the network after four decades, and we have learned what drove her decision despite a personal appeal from CNN boss Mark Thompson. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/christiane...

MS NOW quickly issued a correction after incorrectly reporting that Kash Patel landed in Russia, but as MS NOW reviews its editorial processes, we have learned it wasn’t the only outlet to get the misleading tip. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/ms-now-rus...

Elon Musk’s “flying” Roadster can stay airborne for only a few seconds, but that was apparently long enough for much of the press to abandon its skepticism entirely. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/elon-musk-...

Donald Trump wanted someone as press secretary who could defend him on TV. Two brutal interviews on Fox News sealed Katie Zacharia’s fate. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/katie-zach...

After an explosive all-hands meeting that left CBS News’ foreign desk in turmoil, embattled editor Shayndi Raice attempted to make some amends during an awkward boat cruise, we have learned. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/cbs-news-i...

Meta's sudden ban on ByteDance advertising caught even some inside the company by surprise, we have learned, fueling speculation of retaliation against TikTok and raising fresh antitrust concerns. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/meta-tikto...

Bari Weiss’ handpicked foreign editor unleashed an explosive tirade at CBS News staffers, threatened insubordinate journalists with firing, and clashed with correspondent Holly Williams, according to audio we obtained. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/bari-weiss...

Two recent clashes over Israel coverage have roiled Bari Weiss' CBS News, we have learned, with one confrontation even pushing legendary “60 Minutes” correspondent Lesley Stahl to the brink of quitting. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/bari-weiss...

We have learned new details about the chain of events that led to ABC News’ publication of its error-riddled Donald Trump Jr. story, which casts doubt on claims it was published prematurely, as frustration mounts inside the network. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/abc-news-d...

CNN’s new owner David Ellison says he’s backing the network in its fight with the White House. But after courting Trump to get his merger prize, will Ellison stand up to him? More in @status.news: www.status.news/p/donald-tru...

Skydance closed its Warner Bros. deal with a virtually unprecedented tower of debt. Cutting it to sustainable levels won’t be easy, experts told us. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/skydance-d...

Anderson Cooper held David Ellison’s feet to the fire over CNN and his relationship with Trump. Watch the full episode of Power Lines: youtu.be/cGLpMYiWAp8?... Or listen via a podcast app: www.status.news/power-lines

David Ellison spent considerable time at CNN’s New York offices on Thursday, we have learned, meeting with network boss Mark Thompson, touring the newsroom, and participating in a closed-doors meeting with top network executives. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/david-elli...

On the first day atop his new Skydance media empire, David Ellison faced pointed questions from Anderson Cooper and Status about CNN, his coziness with Donald Trump, and his commitment to editorial independence. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/david-elli...

CNN staffers breathed a sigh of relief when Mark Thompson agreed to stay on under Skydance. But we have learned that he hasn’t yet finalized a new contract—and he’s not the only top CNN executive whose deal expires in 2027. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/mark-thomp...

Weeks after gutting local newsrooms, McClatchy leadership has offered staffers virtually no explanation of what comes next, Status has learned, as the company builds out its controversial A.I. operation. The details in @status.news www.status.news/p/mcclatchy-...

David Ellison has acquired another media conglomerate to add to his new burgeoning media empire. Now comes the hard part: brutal cost cuts to make the economics work. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/david-elli...

Some MS NOW staffers are not so happy that their network is airing Donald Trump’s propaganda ads. Watch the full episode of Power Lines: youtu.be/GCdmkD0PKP0?... Or listen via a podcast app: www.status.news/power-lines

Disney's president said this week that Jimmy Kimmel is doing a “phenomenal job,” but offered an ominous explanation for why that may not be enough to keep his late-night show on ABC. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/jimmy-kimm...

David Ellison has asked Mark Thompson to stay at CNN, for now—buying time, but leaving the network's long-term future, and Bari Weiss' potential role, unresolved. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/paramount-...

Donald Trump tried to ban MS NOW from the White House. Now, his administration is planning to spend taxpayer dollars to reach its viewers, and inside the network, we have learned, some are "pissed." Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/ms-now-tru...

While Comcast announced plans to spin off NBCUniversal, we have learned executives have been privately weighing whether to hang on to their 12 local television stations rather than risk a fight with Donald Trump’s FCC. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/comcast-nb...

Paramount is nearing a deal to pay an eye-popping sum for a documentary about the late Lindsey Graham that is also said to contain candid footage involving David Ellison himself, we have learned. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/paramount-...

Just as major networks thought their standoff with the White House was cooling, CNN was blocked from pool duty again, forcing the group into a day-by-day battle over coverage. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/trump-cnn-...

As apprehension grips Warner Bros. Discovery's workforce, employees are wondering when Paramount will announce the merged company's leadership team and close the $111 billion merger. Here's what we have learned. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/paramount-...

At Axel Springer’s event honoring Peter Thiel in Berlin, the publishing boss dismissed his own journalists’ concerns and sat silently as the PayPal co-founder attacked the press, fueling further pushback from staffers, we have learned. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/peter-thie...

CNN chief Mark Thompson fielded staffers’ questions about editorial independence and the network's future under Paramount, according to an audio recording obtained by Status, acknowledging he has few answers, even when it comes to his own future. Details in Status: www.status.news/p/mark-thomp...

The anonymous source behind one of the stories the White House cited to justify banning POLITICO was none other than Vice President JD Vance, we have learned. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/white-hous...

Axel Springer—the publisher behind POLITICO and Business Insider— is set to honor Trump ally Peter Thiel this week—and we have learned that staffers are pushing back, accusing the company of undermining its own commitment to press freedom. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/axel-sprin...

David Ellison worked the phones over the weekend to secure a settlement for his Warners takeover—but the deal’s supposed safeguard for CNN is already drawing skepticism from inside the network as staffers brace for what’s next. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/david-elli...

As news organizations prepare to challenge Trump’s media ban in court, CNN’s scheduled pool duty is forcing the press corps to immediately confront how far it will go in defense of its barred colleagues. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/trump-pres...

Paramount may be closing in on a settlement with California AG Rob Bonta, but at least two states are pushing back, we have learned. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/ellison-s-...

The anti-press president abruptly announced a ban of CNN, MS NOW, and POLITICO from the White House—a move that blindsided the organizations and even some officials in his administration, we have learned. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/trump-pres...

Why didn’t Ed Sheeran stand up for Macklemore’s right to free speech? Watch the full episode of Power Lines: youtu.be/P6HSUq4GtVQ?... Or listen via a podcast app: www.status.news/power-lines

Puck's lead media reporter has gone to unusual lengths to defend Bari Weiss’ disastrous CBS News overhaul—all as the outlet pursues a lucrative deal with one of Paramount’s top investors. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/puck-cbs-n...

Business Insider's new boss warned staffers that the traffic-driven model that built Business Insider is collapsing, according to an audio recording we obtained, revealing internal numbers and his plan to turn the business around. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/business-i...

Bari Weiss blew up “60 Minutes," ostensibly to create a better show. Instead, her revamped premiere just suffered its worst debut ratings of the 21st century—what one longtime TV executive told us amounts to a “death spiral.” Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/60-minutes...