Two Democratic lawmakers – U.S. Reps. Sam Liccardo (D-Calif.) and Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) – have expressed “serious national security concerns” over Paramount Skydance‘s hostile takeover bid for Warner Bros.Discovery.
Liccardo and Pressley sent a letter Wednesday to Warner Bros. Discovery president and CEO David Zaslav and members of WBD’s board of directors. They also sent a copy of the letter to U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
A Paramount deal for WBD “could transfer significant influence over one of the largest American media companies to foreign-backed financiers,” the U.S. representatives wrote.
Specifically, the U.S. representatives are concerned about Paramount’s takeover offer for WBD being backed by sovereign wealth funds of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Abu Dhabi. The Saudi Public Investment Fund is controlled by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. according to the representatives, “U.S. intelligence agencies have conclusively implicated prince Salman in the brutal homicide of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, to suppress dissent.”
Liccardo and Pressley also noted that Paramount’s bid for WBD is backed by Affinity Partners, the investment company formed by Jared kushner, who is President Donald Trump’s son-in-law.
the lawmakers wrote that a future Democratic-controlled Congress or White House “will review many of the decisions of the current Administration, and may recommend that regulators push for divestitures, which woudl undermine the strategic logic of this merger.”
Reps for Warner Bros. Discovery and Paramount Skydance declined to comment.
On Monday, David Ellison’s Paramount Skydance launched a direct-to-shareholders hostile takeover effort for WBD with its most recent bid carrying an enterprise value of $108.4 billion. That came after Netflix and Warner Bros.Discovery on Dec. 5 announced an $83.7 billion agreement under which the streamer would buy WB’s studios, HBO, HBDavid Zaslav
President and Chief Executive Officer
Warner Bros. Discovery
230 Park Avenue South
new York, NY 10003
dear Mr. Zaslav:
We write regarding recent reports that Paramount Skydance, supported by meaningful foreign investors, is pursuing a potential acquisition of Warner Brothers Discovery (“Warner”).
This transaction raises national security concerns because it could transfer substantial influence over one of the largest american media companies to foreign-backed financiers. If Warner proceeds with any transaction involving foreign sovereign or state-linked investors, we demand that the company instantly file a notice with the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) and submit the transaction for a full national security review.
A merger of this scale, involving two of the nation’s most influential media companies, carries implications far beyond ordinary commercial consolidation. Warner’s platforms reach tens of millions of American households through HBO,max,CNN,Warner Bros. Pictures, Discovery, and numerous digital and cable properties.They also shape the news, entertainment, and cultural content consumed by the American public. Any transaction providing foreign investors with governance rights, access to non-public data, or indirect influence over content distribution creates vulnerabilities that foreign governments could exploit.
Public reporting indicates that Paramount Skydance’s financing includes substantial foreign participation,including sovereign-wealth capital funds and investors with documented ties to foreign governments. These investors include Emirati and Qatari funds, and also Affinity Partners, a private equity fund founded by Jared Kushner and backed by a $2 billion investment from the Saudi Public Investment fund. The fund is controlled by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, whom (according to the declassified 2021 report of the U.S. Director of National Intelligence) ordered the murder of U.S. resident and Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
These investors, by virtue of their financial position or contractual rights, could obtain influence – direct or indirect – over business decisions that bear upon editorial independence, content moderation, distribution priorities, or the stewardship of Americans’ private data. Even absent overt control,such influence can present a national-security threat when foreign state-linked entities have strategic interests inconsistent with those of the United States
Given these risks,Warner’s Board of Directors must treat this transaction not only as a commercial proposal but as a matter with substantial national security consequences. CFIUS’s mandate is clear: The Committee evaluates how foreign investment could harm U.S. national security and s