Peter Kafka

Saudi Arabia, other Gulf states pledged to invest $24 billion in Paramount's WBD deal. Is that still on? Saudi Arabia and two other Gulf states were going to invest $24 billion to help the Ellisons buy WBD last year. Are those deals still in place?

Last year the Ellisons were going to use $24 billion in Gulf state money to help Paramount buy WBD.

Is that still happening? Paramount won't say.

New from me:
www.businessinsider.com/paramount-wb...

Two months ago Trump said it was "imperative" that CNN get new owners.

But Netflix boss Ted Sarandos says Trump's statement (or anything else he said in public) had nothing to do with Netflix backing away from its Warners bid.

www.businessinsider.com/netflix-sara...

New on Channels: A year ago David Ellison ran a "borderline irrelevant film studio." Now he's going to run a media empire. CNBC's Alex Sherman walks us through how we got here and what's next.

podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/c...

Entirely possible. Otoh CNN's previous manager tried to move it right, so wouldn't be the first time. Re: HBO I would assume Ellison works hard to assure team, but he also lost Taylor Sheridan so dunno

Ding ding

We can guess why Netflix bailed.

But we know the outcome.

By me: www.businessinsider.com/why-netflix-...

A chat with CNN's @brianstelter.bsky.social about Trump's power when it comes to media deals. Which of course includes the future of WBD, which owns CNN: If Trump really wants new ownership for CNN, that means he'll favor Paramount over Netflix....

podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/c...

Saying the obvious: If the pro AI argument - this brings massive change! - pans out, that means doomer argument - this brings massive change! - pans out, too.

www.businessinsider.com/ai-economy-j...

It's extraordinary for the President of the United States to tell a company to fire someone he doesn't like.

But it's not unusual for Donald Trump.

New from me, on the new normal we shouldn't get used to. www.businessinsider.com/trump-netfli...

Warner Bros. Discovery board gives Larry and David Ellison another chance to buy the company. One of the world's richest men and his son get another shot at the media conglomerate, which includes Warner Bros., HBO and CNN.

Larry and David Ellison have a week to submit a new offer for WBD; then Netflix can respond. WBD says they expect the Ellisons to bid more than $31 a share.

www.businessinsider.com/ellisons-war...

ChatGPT's advertising era has started. It's rolling out ads to some US users. A ton of people use ChatGPT but don't pay to use it. Now those free users are about to become revenue-generating users.

Buzzy tech CEOs: Ads are gross. Certainly we can do better.

Buzzy tech CEOs, a few years later: The thing about ads is that they're great.

Welcome to the ChatGPT ads era:

www.businessinsider.com/chatgpt-ads-...

Fun, and correct, to dump on Will Lewis.

But if you're not doing the same for Jeff Bezos - the man who owns the business, hired Lewis and made the business worse through his own decisions...

www.businessinsider.com/will-lewis-j...

After Jeff Bezos bought the Washington Post, things went great — for a while. I asked an insider what happened. After Jeff Bezos bought the Washington Post in 2013, the billionaire was considered a model owner. Not anymore. I asked an insider what happened.

Hard to remember now but Jeff Bezos and the Washington Post used to get along just great.

I talked to longtime Post vet @ErikWemple about what happened to his old paper, and his old owner.

Excerpts: www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-w...

Whole thing: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/c...

Billionaires like Jeff Bezos can save The Washington Post until they decide they won't. We need a better model. The problem with billionaires like Jeff Bezos owning news properties like The Washington Post is they can decide one day to turn off the spigot.

Blame Jeff Bezos!

And, also: We need a business plan for news that doesn't rely on benevolent billionaires.

From me: www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-b...

YouTube star Markiplier made his own movie for much less than "Melania" and beat it at the box office Hollywood has been waiting to see if a big YouTuber could bring their fans to theaters. It just happened.

The big box office winner from the weekend wasn't "Melania"- $75mm costs, $7mm sales. It was @markiplier, whose "Iron Lung" cost ~ $3 million and grossed $22mm.

New from me: www.businessinsider.com/youtube-mark...

A banger if there ever was

These are times when you have to do what's needed, not what you want. So I went to see Melania.
www.businessinsider.com/melania-movi...

Media startups are hard. Semafor says it's working by targeting politicians, CEOs, and advertisers who want to reach them. Semafor CEO Justin Smith explains how his company bucked industry trends by focusing on Washington, DC, and the "global leadership class."

Launching a media startup is hard. One way to make it easier is by targeting Washington, where there's a lot of ad money around the industry/policy complex.

My interview with Semafor CEO @Justin_B_Smith. Excerpt: www.businessinsider.com/semafor-just... full audio podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/c...

The Powell probe is an unprecedented move from Trump's familiar playbook The Federal Reserve is supposed to be independent from the president. The Justice Department investigation into Jerome Powell could change that.

Jerome Powell says Trump's dubious, transparently leverage-seeking investigation into the Fed is unprecedented.

That's true for the Fed. Very standard for Trump, and we see it every day.

New from me: www.businessinsider.com/trump-jerome...

truly what could a satirist make up that would be dumber and funnier than the White House East Wing sponsored by Roblox and defense contractors

Donald Trump's shadow hangs over the call to kill a '60 Minutes' story The new head of CBS News has been immersed in politics since she started. So of course her call to hold a story will be viewed from a political lens.

Sometimes Donald Trump actively meddles with media companies - a reality we've already gotten numb to in the last year.

Sometimes the *idea* of Trump is enough to mess with media companies. Which bring us to Bari Weiss and the Ellisons.

From me:

www.businessinsider.com/bari-weiss-6...

Someone I know has made money by taking old busted phones - from my house - and selling them to classmates so they can put them in their Yondrs, since no one checks to see what's actually in them.

Why the Oscars are leaving ABC for YouTube — and what it means for Hollywood Moving the Oscars from ABC to the internet is hugely symbolic. That doesn't mean that a huge audience will follow.

In a single day, three of old media's most treasured assets have been acquired by digital usurpers — internet services that used to be dismissed by media giants, and are now giants themselves.

New from me: www.businessinsider.com/oscars-youtu...

Paramount wanted to use $24 billion in Middle Eastern money to help buy WBD. That's not why Netflix won. You might think the notion of Saudi money owning part of an American media giant would kill a deal. That's not why it's failed so far.

The Ellisons were using $24 billion from Saudi, Qatar and Abu Dhabi in their WBD bid. That was an issue - but not the main one.

New from me: www.businessinsider.com/paramount-wb...

Lachlan Cartwright Started in Tabloids. Now He’s a Must-Read Media Gossip. Podcast Episode · Channels with Peter Kafka · 12/10/2025 · 47m

Lachlan Cartwright worked for the National Enquirer when it was functionally an arm of the Trump campaign in 2015/2016 - he was part of the catch-and-kill activities. Now he dishes super insidery NYC media gossip. Our chat here:

podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/c...

Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Abu Dhabi are backing the Ellisons' hostile bid for Warner Bros. Why? Paramount's Larry and David Ellison are making a hostile bid for Warner Bros. Three of their partners are Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Abu Dhabi.

Last week Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Abu Dhabi were going to put (at least) $24 billion into WBD - the company that owns HBO, CNN and a big movie studio.

The petrostates are part of the new hostile bid Larry Ellison and his son are making, too.

www.businessinsider.com/paramount-wb...

Donald Trump likes Paramount's Larry and David Ellison. Will he try to stop the Netflix-WBD deal for them? Larry and David Ellison have a good relationship with Donald Trump. Is that enough to get him to kill Netflix's deal to buy Warner Bros. Discovery?

What is the point of being the world's second richest man if you can't get the President of the United States to kill a deal?https://www.businessinsider.com/netflix-wbd-warner-paramount-larry-david-ellison-trump-doj-antitrust-2025-12

The point is he was always going to have partners

He certainly *could* pay for it by himself but I don't think most people thought he would - just like Elon Musk found investors to help him buy Twitter.

Will Middle Eastern oil nations end up owning part of CBS, HBO, CNN — and Hollywood? Paramount might rely on financing from Middle Eastern petrostates for its offer to buy Warner Bros Discovery. That raises some tricky issues.

A scenario we couldn't imagine a few years ago, now quite plausible: Larry Ellison, backed by $ from Saudi and other petrostates, controlling a huge American media conglomerate.

www.businessinsider.com/paramount-wa...