This is, of course, an “only in America” story, but I don't mean it in the usual, heroic sense. I mean this in a creepy, corporate, profit sense. CBS began in 1927 as a radio network and expanded into television as the medium grew. There were entertainment and news departments, and later sports; its news division was considered the best in the United States and, along with the British Broadcasting Corporation, a model of mainstream media standards in democracies. When Edward R. Murrow helped bring down Joe McCarthy, it wasn't “liberalism.” It acted in defense of democracy from a sinister and dishonest demagogue.
Over the decades – and it was a very natural development – CBS grew into a huge corporation involved in film production, entertainment and even musical instruments (it is said that it damaged Fender guitars about 20 years, although today these guitars – I have – are considered vintage, understand). But even that wasn't so bad until the mega-merger era, driven essentially by the end of antitrust laws in the US, gradually faded away: CBS formed Viacom, then they split, and then they merged again. Paramount, which owned part of CBS back in the 1930s, is back on the scene. In 2009, Paramount announced a partnership with a new project called Skydance, created in 2006 by David Ellison.
In July 2024, Skydance and Paramount, now the parent company of CBS, announced their intention to merge. You remember what happened next. That fall, while the merger was under government consideration, and during the presidential campaign, 60 minutes aired an interview with Vice President Kamala Harris. Without any evidence, Donald Trump said it was edited to make Harris look better.
