Paramount executives are concerned they could face bribery accusations if they agree to settle a liability lawsuit with President Donald Trump.
Paramount has mulled over the idea of settling a lawsuit Trump filed against CBS News over a "60 Minutes" interview, the Wall Street Journal reported Friday.
Trump sued CBS for $10 billion, claiming an interview with Vice President Kamala Harris was "doctored."
Trump refused invitations for an in-person interview after the show said it would fact-check him. However, producers went ahead with the Harris interview and revealed the back-and-forth with the Trump campaign. "60 Minutes" later said their extensive interview with Harris had to be edited down due to time constraints, but Trump alleged it was nefariously edited to boost Harris.
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CBS News appeared poised to settle the lawsuit, NPR reported earlier this month. ABC News agreed to settle a lawsuit with Trump after George Stephanopoulos misstated details about a lawsuit for defamation by writer E. Jean Carroll. X CEO Elon Musk, who worked to get Trump elected, gave him a $10 million settlement after Trump sued the site for removing his account after Jan. 6, 2021.
Now, Paramount's settlement spurred concerns it could face allegations of corruption.
"Company executives in recent weeks have talked about the risk that paying such a settlement could expose directors and officers to liability in potential future shareholder litigation or criminal charges for bribing a public official, according to people familiar with the conversations," the Journal reported. "Some executives have expressed an additional concern that such litigation may not be protected by director and officer insurance, some of the people with knowledge of the discussions said."
Paramount plans to merge with Skydance Media and awaits regulatory approval for the deal. Paying off Trump could make it seem like they're doing it so that Trump's government will approve the deal, the Journal noted.
"Some executives have flagged the potential risk that if the company settles and the deal is approved in short order, the payment could be construed as a bribe," reported the Journal, citing people familiar with the matter.
Behind the scenes, Trump pal Larry Ellison, the father of David Ellison, who owns Skydance, was suggested as a possible negotiator with the Trump administration. The hope is that they can make "a deal with the administration that would allow the merger to go through in the near term," the report said.
