Paramount Global and President Trump will reportedly begin mediation in the coming days in his $20 billion lawsuit over CBS News’ “60 Minutes” interview with Kamala Harris.
The two sides tapped a mediator for the case in recent days, The New York Times reported Monday, citing anonymous sources.
The move comes as the deadline for Paramount’s $8 billion deal to merge with Skydance Media, which expired Monday, was extended 90 days.
CBS-parent Paramount and Trump have agreed on a mediator to settle his lawsuit over “60 Minutes’” sitdown with Kamala Harris. 60 Minutes / CBS
If the deal still hasn’t closed by then, it will be subject to a second 90-day extension.
The automatic extensions are triggered in the event that “all of the conditions of the closing, except those relating to regulatory approvals, have been satisfied or waived,” according to the companies’ deal.
Trump’s lawsuit accuses the CBS news program of deceptively editing an interview with the Democratic presidential candidate to make her word-salad answer to a question about the Israel-Hamas conflict more coherent.
CBS has denied that there was anything nefarious in its editing process.
Nonetheless, the two sides began talking about a possible settlement over two months ago, to the dismay of “60 Minutes” employees, who believe the program did nothing wrong.
The show’s top producer Bill Owens told staffers in a meeting in February that he would not apologize as part of any potential settlement.
Trump sued CBS for $20 billion, alleging “60 Minutes” deceptively edited the interview to make Harris look better. CBS has denied those claims. REUTERS
Last month, lawyers for CBS News filed a motion to dismiss the president’s lawsuit, claiming it is an “affront to the First Amendment without basis in law or fact.”
Meanwhile, others at the company want the ordeal over with and believe it is better for Paramount’s broader corporate interests to settle the lawsuit rather than engage in a protracted legal battle with the president.
A rep for Paramount Global, which is home to CBS, MTV and Showtime, declined to comment.
Lawyers for Trump did not immediately return requests for comment.
Skydance agreed to merge with Paramount but the deal has hit many bumps, including the lawsuit and a FCC probe. Christopher Sadowski
Ed Paltzik, a lawyer representing Trump in the case, told The Times in a statement: “President Trump will pursue this vital matter to its just and rightful conclusion.”
Aside from the lawsuit, Paramount is also dealing with the Federal Communications Commission, which is also investigating Trump’s allegations over the Harris sitdown.
In February, the FCC released a full transcript of the “60 Minutes” interview, and is currently reviewing whether the broadcast violated “news distortion” rules. The FCC will need to approve the Skydance-Paramount merger for the deal to go through.
Skydance boss David Ellison has been eager to get the Paramount merger greenlit. FilmMagic
Trump said at the time that Paramount’s merger with Skydance was unrelated to his lawsuit, and a spokesman for the media giant has said the two are “completely separate.”
Still, Paramount’s controlling shareholder Shari Redstone reportedly said in a meeting of Paramount’s board of directors in February that she was interested in bringing in a mediator to facillitate an agreement and get the deal greenlit.
Holllywood production company Skydance, which is led by David Ellison, the son of billionaire Oracle founder Larry Ellison, has also been eager to get the deal — which was initially inked last July — approved by the FCC.
