I'm really disappointed that Bonta and Newsom caved to the Ellison's empty threats. Corporate Democrats won't fight and so we'll get the Ellisons's financial backers, the Gulf Arab autocracies ,controlling CNN and CBS News.
Sorry, Mr. Bonta, but you and your brethren caved. CNN will be just another CBS, which is already just another Fox. No more independent news on television anywhere.
I'm going to have to cut down on my ongoing donations to good causes so I can afford more subscription to truly independent news on substack.
I have read the Norm Eisen has setup an oversight commission to monitor Paramount. I would like to know the details and whether Norm believes this agreement is enforceable
The Democrats capitulate, again. This is precisely why they are (correctly) perceived as feckless and weak and why the Democratic Party is disliked almost as much as the GOP. Shameful.
The biggest damage will be loss of narrative diversity. Ellison is likely one of Trump's major oligarchs and could even be a player in the Epstein mess. This merger is ripe for anti trust prosecution, yet the state AGs caved. What they got for their acquiescence was BS. What
was lost was news without a Trump spin. I would like to know what was shoved under the rug. I can't believe any State Attorney General worth his salt would have abandoned his primary purpose, protection of his state's citizens well being.
NO!!!!!!! Say it ain't so!! This is a betrayal of the public's interests and freedom of the press. What are state attorney generals for, if not protecting our rights, especially when the federal government -- paid by us -- is working for one man.
“Let me be clear: This settlement is not a vote of support for this merger,” Bonta said in a statement Monday. “But we believe this settlement, which resolves our antitrust concerns in every market alleged in our case, protects competition and consumer choice, and puts workers' needs, concerns, and futures first, is the best course of action.”
Wait a minute, let me get my hip waders on. It's getting deep in here.
Very disapppointed. A minimum for approval should be new unrelated ownership for CBS and CNN. The promises made appear to be promises designed to be broken.
That’s sad news for consumers. We cannot trust promises by oligarchs, even if codified by the courts. The AGs will come to regret their decision to settle. A trial would have publicly exposed the shenanigans Ellison used to get his way.
Agreed. The new company will find "creative" ways to get around the rules to which they agreed. They will likely even break the rules because they have so much money that they can tie it up in court for years.
SO disappointed to hear that a Bonta caved to all the pressure he had withstood so adamantly until Newsom diluted this important lawsuit. Newsom has another agenda, but that's not the agenda of the people of California. I can see this backfiring in multiple unforeseen ways. Including my own voting preferences.
Senator Chris Murphy made this statement back in April:
“Ellison and the information oligarchs should enjoy it while they can because when Democrats win power we are going to break these anti-consumer, anti-free speech media conglomerates into pieces”
It can be undone, albeit it will be challenging. If Dems win in 2028, the DOJ can definitely break up the monopoly.
There is a real possibility that the Ellison empire may suffer a fatal financial blow when the AI data center bubble bursts. They are wildly speculating to the tune many billions of dollars trying to corner a huge share of an imagined brave new world in which hopelessly unprofitable frontier labs are actually able to fulfill insane contractual commitments in a technological environment that is evolving so rapidly that the big players may be left holding empty bags when the venture capital dries up and the operational revenues never arrive. Eye-wateringly empty bags.
The numbers are hair-raising if this thing goes significantly sideways, and the Ellisons are in as deep as you can get with a bond-market credit rating that's teetering over junk-grade.
I'm really disappointed that Bonta and Newsom caved to the Ellison's empty threats. Corporate Democrats won't fight and so we'll get the Ellisons's financial backers, the Gulf Arab autocracies ,controlling CNN and CBS News.
Fingers crossed that this comes back to bite Newsom's Presidential ambitions in the tuchas.
I just hope people remember this when Newsom attempts to run as an adversary for people's interests. He is a craven, ambitious, self-serving snake.
Sorry, Mr. Bonta, but you and your brethren caved. CNN will be just another CBS, which is already just another Fox. No more independent news on television anywhere.
I'm going to have to cut down on my ongoing donations to good causes so I can afford more subscription to truly independent news on substack.
I have read the Norm Eisen has setup an oversight commission to monitor Paramount. I would like to know the details and whether Norm believes this agreement is enforceable
The Democrats capitulate, again. This is precisely why they are (correctly) perceived as feckless and weak and why the Democratic Party is disliked almost as much as the GOP. Shameful.
And in so doing, Newsom struck a self-inflicted wound into his presumptive 2028 candidacy. Who needs another invertebrate?
We can only hope
The biggest damage will be loss of narrative diversity. Ellison is likely one of Trump's major oligarchs and could even be a player in the Epstein mess. This merger is ripe for anti trust prosecution, yet the state AGs caved. What they got for their acquiescence was BS. What
was lost was news without a Trump spin. I would like to know what was shoved under the rug. I can't believe any State Attorney General worth his salt would have abandoned his primary purpose, protection of his state's citizens well being.
NO!!!!!!! Say it ain't so!! This is a betrayal of the public's interests and freedom of the press. What are state attorney generals for, if not protecting our rights, especially when the federal government -- paid by us -- is working for one man.
“Let me be clear: This settlement is not a vote of support for this merger,” Bonta said in a statement Monday. “But we believe this settlement, which resolves our antitrust concerns in every market alleged in our case, protects competition and consumer choice, and puts workers' needs, concerns, and futures first, is the best course of action.”
Wait a minute, let me get my hip waders on. It's getting deep in here.
Very disapppointed. A minimum for approval should be new unrelated ownership for CBS and CNN. The promises made appear to be promises designed to be broken.
I wonder whose script they are following?
They caved to empty threats in exchange for empty promises.
Sickening.
We can only hope that there will be eventual consequences that reflect fairness and justice. This agreement does not.
We must all boycott, boycott, boycott every media piece now run by Ellison. Clearly he understands only money and the power it enables.
That’s sad news for consumers. We cannot trust promises by oligarchs, even if codified by the courts. The AGs will come to regret their decision to settle. A trial would have publicly exposed the shenanigans Ellison used to get his way.
Agreed. The new company will find "creative" ways to get around the rules to which they agreed. They will likely even break the rules because they have so much money that they can tie it up in court for years.
SO disappointed to hear that a Bonta caved to all the pressure he had withstood so adamantly until Newsom diluted this important lawsuit. Newsom has another agenda, but that's not the agenda of the people of California. I can see this backfiring in multiple unforeseen ways. Including my own voting preferences.
An extraordinary loss, for democracy and for the American people.
no more votes for Bonta or Newsom
Senator Chris Murphy made this statement back in April:
“Ellison and the information oligarchs should enjoy it while they can because when Democrats win power we are going to break these anti-consumer, anti-free speech media conglomerates into pieces”
It can be undone, albeit it will be challenging. If Dems win in 2028, the DOJ can definitely break up the monopoly.
There is a real possibility that the Ellison empire may suffer a fatal financial blow when the AI data center bubble bursts. They are wildly speculating to the tune many billions of dollars trying to corner a huge share of an imagined brave new world in which hopelessly unprofitable frontier labs are actually able to fulfill insane contractual commitments in a technological environment that is evolving so rapidly that the big players may be left holding empty bags when the venture capital dries up and the operational revenues never arrive. Eye-wateringly empty bags.
The numbers are hair-raising if this thing goes significantly sideways, and the Ellisons are in as deep as you can get with a bond-market credit rating that's teetering over junk-grade.