A CBS News insider erupted Tuesday after new Skydance CEO David Ellison promised to protect the editorial independence of the company’s newsrooms, according to media columnist Justin Baragona.
“You’re pledging not to interfere with editorial at CNN?” Anderson Cooper asked Ellison during Skydance’s first companywide town hall following the massive Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger.
Ellison responded to the CNN anchor by promising to support the network’s editorial independence, Baragona, a Zeteo News media correspondent, told his followers in a thread on X.
“Lies. All lies,” one CBS News source told him after Ellison made the pledge.
Cooper also pressed Ellison and co-CEO Ynon Kreiz about looming cuts. The pair said Skydance plans to slash $6 billion in costs over three years, but said most of the savings would not come from staffing.
“You cannot cut your way to growth,” Ellison said after Cooper repeatedly pressed him about layoffs, Baragona reported.
But Cooper’s role in the town hall drew mixed reactions from inside the company.
“JFC - they’re making Anderson Cooper dance like a monkey," another CBS source told Baragona.
Another source had a different take, telling the media columnist that Cooper likely agreed to participate to “stand up” for the news division and his colleagues.
“He did great,” a CNN source said, adding that having Cooper ask tough questions "sent a signal.”
“The source also noted that Ellison answered those questions well,” Baragona wrote.
Ellison's first Skydance town hall has just wrapped."Lies. All lies," one CBS News source reacted to Ellison's pledge to respect the news networks' editorial independence, referencing Ellison's previous broken promise to CBS News when he bought Paramount.
— Justin Baragona (@justinbaragona) October 6, 2026