Paramount to begin mediation with President Trump in $20B lawsuit over 60 Minutes interview: report
Paramount Global and President Trump will reportedly begin mediation in the coming days in his $20 billion lawsuit over CBS News’ “60 Minutes” interview with Kamala Harris.The two sides tapped a mediator for the case in recent days, The New York Times reported Monday, citing anonymous sources.The move comes as the deadline for Paramount’s $8 billion deal to merge with Skydance Media, which expired Monday, was extended 90 days.If the deal still hasn’t closed by then, it will be subject to a second 90-day extension.The automatic extensions are triggered in the event that “all of the conditions of the closing, except those relating to regulatory approvals, have been satisfied or waived,” according to the companies’ deal.Trump’s lawsuit accuses the CBS news program of deceptively editing an interview with the Democratic presidential candidate to make her word-salad answer to a question about the Israel-Hamas conflict more coherent.CBS has denied that there was anything nefarious in its editing process. Nonetheless, the two sides began talking about a possible settlement over two months ago, to the dismay of “60 Minutes” employees, who believe the program did nothing wrong.
The show’s top producer Bill Owens told staffers in a meeting in February that he would not apologize as part of any potential settlement.Last month, lawyers for CBS News filed a motion to dismiss the president’s lawsuit, claiming it is an “affront to the First Amendment without basis in law or fact.”Meanwhile, others at the company want the ordeal over with and believe it is better for Paramount’s broader corporate interests to settle the lawsuit rather than engage in a protracted legal battle with the president.A rep for Paramount Global, which is home to CBS, MTV and Showtime, declined to comment.
Lawyers for Trump did not immediately return requests for comment.Ed Paltzik, a lawyer representing Trump in the case, told The Times in a statement: “President T...