Bari Weiss is now CBS News editor-in-chief after Paramount acquires The Free Press

By Brian Stelter, CNN

Journalist and entrepreneur Bari Weiss is taking charge at CBS News through the acquisition of her startup, The Free Press, by CBS parent company Paramount.

Weiss will be the editor-in-chief of CBS News starting Monday, she said in a letter to readers. She will remain the CEO and editor of The Free Press, which she said will “remain independent” inside Paramount.

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Weiss said the acquisition “gives The Free Press a chance to help reshape a storied media organization — to help guide CBS News into a future that honors those great values that underpin The Free Press and the best of American journalism. And in doing so, to bring our mission to millions of people.”

David Ellison, the CEO of the recently formed Paramount Skydance, has been talking with Weiss about a possible tie-up for months.

The Paramount boss was said to be interested in infusing Weiss’s editorial perspective into CBS News, a prospect that has unsettled some journalists there.

The Free Press has won fans, and created plenty of fodder for critics, with heterodox columns and features. The site’s volume of so-called anti-woke content stood out in a crowded media landscape; so did its opinion pieces conveying strong support of Israel, a view that Ellison outspokenly shares.

At its core, The Free Press is more of a digital magazine than an up-to-the-minute network news operation like CBS News — making it an unusual acquisition for Paramount.

The Wall Street Journal reported Monday that Paramount is paying about $150 million for the startup.

“As editor-in-chief of CBS News, Weiss will shape editorial priorities, champion core values across platforms, and lead innovation in how the organization reports and delivers the news,” Paramount said in a statement.

“Bari will report directly to me,” Ellison wrote in a statement, “leading the work of The Free Press and collaborating with our CBS News team in the pursuit of making it the most trusted name in news.”

He added, “We believe the majority of the country longs for news that is balanced and fact-based, and we want CBS to be their home.”

This is a developing story and will be updated…