President Trump notched more victories this week in his culture war battles with the news media and universities.
Paramount Global, the parent company of CBS News, agreed to pay $16 million to Trump’s future presidential library to settle a lawsuit Trump brought against the company over a “60 Minutes” interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris that aired during the presidential campaign.
In addition, Paramount said “60 Minutes” will release full transcripts of future interviews with presidential candidates after they air.
There is anger among Democrats and in the media world at Paramount’s decision to settle, which some see as a capitulation to the Trump administration.
Paramount is trying to close a massive merger deal with Hollywood giant Skydance, an estimated $28 billion deal that will need approval from Trump administration regulators.
Shari Redstone, Paramount’s longtime chair, stands to make more than $500 million if the deal goes through.
“Paramount just paid Trump a bribe for merger approval,” Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), the ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, posted on X. “When Democrats retake power, I’ll be first in line calling for federal charges. In the meantime, state prosecutors should make the corporate execs who sold out our democracy answer in court, today.”
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) called it a “dark day for independent journalism.”
The settlement concludes a saga that began after Trump and his attorneys accused “60 Minutes” of “election interference,” saying a Harris interview was edited to make her responses more coherent.
The Federal Communications Commision released the transcript after the election, revealing the full version of an answer Harris gave on the war in Gaza that did not appear during the television broadcast.
“In reporting the news, journalists regularly edit interviews — for time, space or clarity,” the program said at the time. “In making these edits, 60 Minutes is always guided by the truth and what we believe will be most informative to the viewing public — all while working within the constraints of broadcast television.”
At the time, Paramount called the lawsuit “completely without merit,” a sentiment shared by many legal experts and First Amendment advocates. However, by settling, Paramount avoids the discovery process, which can lead to the release of internal communications.
MEANWHILE…
The University of Pennsylvania has agreed to bar transgender women from participating on its women’s sports teams and will remove records set by Lia Thomas, the former Penn swimmer who became the first transgender woman to win a NCAA Division I national championship.
The agreement comes after the Education Department found Penn violated Title IX, the federal law against sex discrimination, by allowing Thomas to join the women’s team in 2021.
The university — which is also Trump’s alma mater — will award the titles to the next place finisher and apologize “to each impacted female swimmer.”
The resolution also requires the school to issue a public statement saying it will comply with the administration’s interpretation of Title IX and adopt “biology-based” definitions of the words male and female.
This week, the House Judiciary Committee subpoenaed Penn and Brown University as part of an investigation into allegations of tuition coordination among Ivy League schools.
This comes after University of Virginia (UVA) President James Ryan announced he’d leave his post amid a Department of Justice (DOJ) civil rights investigation into the university’s diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
UVA’s Board of Visitors voted unanimously in March to shut down the university’s DEI offices, but the DOJ continued to push for Ryan’s ouster.
Ryan said in a statement that he decided to resign a year earlier than planned so that the university would not lose millions in federal funding.
Democrats notched one culture war victory this week. The Wisconsin Supreme Court struck down the state’s 176-year old abortion ban.
ELSEWHERE…
• A new poll from ISSUU finds former Vice President Harris with a double digit lead over a field of declared and contenders running for governor in California. Harris is at 24 percent, followed by businessman Rick Caruso (D) at 9 percent. However, 40 percent remain undecided and 6 percent of those polled say they won’t vote at all.
