Donald Trump has claimed that the future owner of US network CBS will provide him with $20m worth of advertising and programming, days after the network cancelled The Late Show With Stephen Colbert. The US president recently reached a $16m settlement with Paramount, parent of CBS News, over what he claimed was misleading editing of a pre-election interview with Kamala Harris.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump wrote: 'Paramount/CBS/60 Minutes have today paid $16 Million Dollars in settlement, and we also anticipate receiving $20 Million Dollars more from the new Owners, in Advertising, PSAs [public service announcements], or similar Programming, for a total of over $36 Million Dollars.' CBS and Skydance Media, which is in the process of buying Paramount for $8bn, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The $16m settlement was criticised by many as a capitulation by media companies seeking to appease the president. ABC News, owned by Disney, also agreed to pay $15m to settle a defamation lawsuit. Senator Elizabeth Warren said on X: 'This reeks of corruption.'
Trump's claim comes days after CBS announced the cancellation of The Late Show, whose host Stephen Colbert had branded the settlement 'a big fat bribe'. Colbert is due to remain on air until May and has said 'the gloves are off'. Skydance was founded by David Ellison, son of Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison and an ally of Trump.
