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Kushner and Saudis back hostile takeover of Hollywood giant
Jared Kushner is funneling $24 billion from Middle Eastern governments to back a hostile bid for Warner Bros. Discovery—all while advising President Trump on foreign policy.
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On Monday morning, Paramount announced a $77.9 billion hostile takeover offer of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), an American media conglomerate that owns an iconic movie studio, HBO, and other news and entertainment properties. The offer is meant to upend Netflix’s deal to purchase WBD for $72 billion, which WBD accepted last Friday.
Paramount’s press release announcing the offer says that the $40 billion in equity financing will be “backstopped by Ellison Family and RedBird Capital.” The CEO of Paramount is David Ellison, the son of Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, the second-wealthiest person in the world. RedBird Capital is an investment fund based in New York. (The rest of the cash for the purchase will be raised as debt from American banks.)
What is not mentioned in the press release is that while the equity financing is “backstopped” by American individuals and entities, the majority of the equity financing — $24 billion — comes from the sovereign wealth funds of Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi, and Qatar. That fact is buried on page 42 of a separate SEC filing.
$24 billion is a massive investment by foreign governments on Paramount’s behalf. To put it in perspective, the current value of Paramount is just $15 billion.
Also participating in the deal is Affinity Partners, the private equity firm run by President Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner. Nearly all of Affinity Partners’ assets come from the same sovereign wealth funds bankrolling the proposed Paramount takeover of WBD. Kushner collects tens of millions in fees from Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern countries annually.
Kushner’s involvement in the deal highlights the ongoing legal and ethical problems with his dual role. On the one hand, Kushner is operating as a high-ranking official representing the Trump administration in the most sensitive foreign policy matters. On the other hand, he is being paid by and partnering with Middle Eastern governments as they seek to expand their political, economic, and cultural interests.
Any acquisition of WBD requires the approval of multiple federal agencies. On Sunday, the day before Paramount’s hostile takeover bid was announced, Trump warned that Netflix’s planned acquisition “could be a problem“ because the combined company would have too much market share. It was a somewhat surprising comment from a president who has not made antitrust a central issue of his presidency. Trump also emphasized that while he would consult “some economists” he would also personally “be involved” in the decision.
Ted Sarandos, Netflix’s CEO, reportedly “wooed Trump“ at the White House in advance of the company’s WBD offer. Netflix agreed to pay WBD $5.7 billion if the deal did not receive regulatory approval, one of the largest breakup fees ever. This reflected Netflix’s confidence that the deal would win Trump administration approval — at least before Kushner became involved.
A reporter asked Trump on Monday if Kushner’s involvement with Paramount’s deal could influence his views. “I don’t know,” Trump responded. “I’ve never spoken with him about it.”
Paramount is willing to conform to Trump’s ideological agenda
Trump may be more amenable to Paramount’s bid for WBD, because Paramount has a history of bowing to Trump’s political demands, especially since David Ellison became CEO in August.
In September, CBS News announced that it hired a Trump loyalist, Kenneth R. Weinstein, to “receive and evaluate any complaints of bias or other concerns involving CBS” as the company’s new ombudsman. Paramount had promised to create the job to secure approval for its merger with Skydance. Weinstein had no experience with producing or overseeing news coverage and previously was the president of the Hudson Institute, a right-wing think tank. Weinstein has an extensive record of praising Trump, and in July 2024, Weinstein donated $20,000 to a committee supporting Trump’s campaign.
In October, Paramount announced that it was hiring anti-woke crusader Bari Weiss as the new editor-in-chief of CBS News and purchasing Weiss’ The Free Press for a reported $150 million. Weiss, a former New York Times opinion editor and writer, had no experience in broadcast news. In 2021, Weiss founded The Free Press, a right-leaning publication that often criticizes what it deems the “woke” left and efforts to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). A Popular Information review of The Free Press’ articles found that it repeatedly distorted the truth in order to conform to a right-wing ideological agenda.
Larry Ellison is also a close ally of Trump. In 2020, he held a “six-figure-per-person campaign fundraiser”