David Ellison, CEO of Paramount Skydance, speaks during the Paramount Pictures presentation at CinemaCon, the official convention of Cinema United, in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S., April 16, 2026. REUTERS/Caroline Brehman
The new boss of CBS who claimed he was too swamped to face Congress was caught red-handed making time for something far more to his liking — a private dinner with the president whose goodwill he has chased.
Paramount Skydance chief David Ellison, who seized control of CBS last summer, ducked a Senate appearance Wednesday by citing a death in the family. Twenty-four hours later, he took the stage in front of a roomful of movie industry insiders at CinemaCon, the Daily Beast noted Friday.
Ellison is now set to descend on Washington next week to throw what organizers are calling an intimate fete celebrating Trump alongside CBS journalists, staged at a venue bearing the president's name: the Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace.
Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) saw an opening.
“Mr. Ellison has an invitation to appear before the Senate when he is in Washington next week,” Booker told the Status newsletter. “As the ranking member of the Antitrust Subcommittee, I have requested information to address concerns about the merger’s effects on the entertainment and media industries.”
“If the merger is as beneficial as Paramount claims, a public forum is an opportunity for Mr. Ellison to make his case before the American public,” Booker said.
Status’ Oliver Darcy said the dinner “flies in the face of obvious news ethics.”
For now, Booker lacks the votes to force Ellison's hand, as Republican leaders would have to play along for any subpoena to move forward.