CBS News and CNN staffers fear ‘disaster’ as Paramount wins Warner Bros battle

Decision by Netflix to walk away from takeover leaves workers anxious about possible merger of news networks

Netflix's decision to walk away from its $83bn bid for Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) has left some staffers working at CBS News and CNN panicking about the future as the two top-tier news operations come under the same roof.

With Paramount Skydance emerging as the winning bidder, a deal that still requires the approval of WBD shareholders and government regulators, they fear the merging of the two networks - and, with it, the potential for a significant amount of job cuts. Some CNN employees are also nervous about Paramount's Trump-friendly ownership and leadership enacting ideologically driven programming changes at the network, with particular concern about the specter of CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss possibly getting a significant role.