‘Polarizing’ journalist Bari Weiss to become CBS News editor-in-chief in wake of controversial Paramount merger: report

Sources told the New York Post the timing of the appointment remains fluid, but the move would give her sweeping influence over CBS News as the network undergoes a major shake‑up that has itself already sparked controversy.

The $8bn August merger of Paramount and Skydance, given the go-ahead by Donald Trump’s government, brings Paramount's Hollywood legacy, major TV networks like CBS and MTV, streaming services and more together under the roof of a new power player: billionaire Skydance founder David Ellison.

Weiss would report directly to Ellison, who has apparently long sought to acquire her and The Free Press, to set the editorial direction at CBS – an institution which the Times has described as “the country’s quintessential traditional TV news organization”.

There has been strong reaction in the media to news of Weiss’ expected arrival at CBS, with one “former CBS veteran telling the Post “it would be like dropping a grenade” in the newsroom.

A recent profile in The Guardian contends that “more than any other figure in her age cohort, Weiss wrote the playbook on canceling anti-Zionists and ‘woke’ progressives, even as she decried ‘cancel culture’ and claimed to champion free speech”.

The piece, by David Klion, a columnist for the Nation and contributing editor at Jewish Currents, added: “If Weiss does join CBS, it will only formalize the role she has already carved out as the Trump administration’s de facto ally in its effort to silence progressive and pro-Palestinian voices.”

Author of the successful Status newsletter, Oliver Darcy described Weiss as “one of the most polarizing figures in media”, and said her “stridently pro-Israel, proudly anti-'woke' culture warrior” stance will erode trust in the media, putting CBS News “on a course to squander its hard-earned credibility”.

Fox News said one CBS staffer had welcomed the potential changes however: "Maybe more free thought, free expression is on the way. Nothing to fear here," they reportedly said.

A source told the Post that The Free Press, which Weiss set up with her wife and sister following her departure from the Times, will remain a standalone operation, separate from CBS News and owned by Paramount.

Weiss has used The Free Press to argue against diversity and inclusion programmes, described Israel’s war on Gaza as a “war of defense”, and described Melania Trump as “the least ambitious” First Lady in history. She also said she voted for Joe Biden in the 2020 U.S. Election.

Weiss’s appointment casts doubt on speculation about the possible return of former CBS President David Rhodes to the network, the Post said, with one of their sources saying it was an “either/or” situation.