Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison is hosting an intimate event to honor Donald Trump’s White House, along with correspondents from the now–MAGA-friendly CBS News.
Ellison, the billionaire media mogul and son of top Trump donor Larry Ellison, is holding the gathering on April 23, just two days before the annual White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, according to a copy of the invitation seen by Breaker.
As noted by Status’ Oliver Darcy, the idea of Ellison—who took over CBS News as part of a merger with Paramount-Skydance last year—putting on an event honoring Trump “flies in the face of obvious news ethics.”
“At the very least, the optics are terrible. Paramount wishes to convince the world that it is not in bed with Trump, but events like this suggest the opposite,” Darcy added.
Ellison is also pursuing a $110 billion deal for Paramount to purchase Warner Bros., the parent company of CNN, raising fears about the future of the network, which has been one of the most critical of Trump throughout his political career. That deal is awaiting regulatory approval.
The invite-only cocktails-and-dinner event hosted by Ellison will also be held at the United States Institute of Peace in Washington, D.C., which the State Department announced would be rebranded to include Trump’s name in December 2025.
Ellison is set to host the event just before the annual White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, where politicians and government officials mingle with high-profile members of the press in D.C.
Ellison had previously spent $150 million to acquire The Free Press and install its MAGA-curious co-founder, Bari Weiss, as editor-in-chief of CBS News despite having zero television industry experience.
Since then, CBS News has become much more favorable to the Trump administration, while also recording dwindling audiences and mass layoffs.
Breaker previously reported that CBS News had invited both Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller to the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner.
Inviting Hegseth, who has routinely attacked press freedom and insulted journalists, raised concern among CBS News staff. One disgruntled network employee told Status the move amounted to an “access play” by Weiss and CBS.
Trump himself will attend the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner on April 25 for the first time as president, after years of boycotting the event.
The 79-year-old was humiliated when he attended the event in 2011, as President Barack Obama and comedian Seth Meyers ruthlessly mocked his presidential ambitions.
The Daily Beast has contacted Paramount for comment.
