Why Do Conservatives Think Paramount Is The Conservative White Knight?

Prominent conservative activist Jack Posobiec has said that if Netflix succeeds with its proposed purchase of Warner Brothers Discovery (WBD), it will result in “the Obamas taking over media.” At One America News, a popular source of conservative opinion, National Constitution Law Union founder John Pierce has written that the combination is “an attempt to consolidate unprecedented cultural power inside one of America’s most ideologically aggressive corporations.”

The alarmism is difficult to take seriously. And that’s not a partisan observation. Instead, it’s a comment about Netflix’s $357 billion market capitalization. The Los Gatos, CA-based corporation achieved such lofty heights not by engaging in culture or political wars, but thanks to co-founder Reed Hasting’s remarkable ability to repeatedly anticipate the needs of consumers (think DVDs by mail, streaming as a replacement for DVDs by mail, binge-watching shows, etc. etc.) well before the buying public knew it had those needs. Netflix’s history is one of seeing around the business corner with remarkable clarity, not playing politics.

Pierce has written that WBD favors the Netflix bid “because it aligned more closely with the ideological preferences of Warner’s executives.” His explicit insinuation that Netflix represents left-wing comity with WBD, while Paramount is the better, more conservative alternative rates comment. The reality is more nuanced.

As Pierce may know, Paramount owns Comedy Central among other assets. This rates substantial mention when it’s remembered that The Daily Show makes sport of skewering conservatives. Which makes sense when it’s remembered that Jon Stewart, The Daily Show’s executive producer, has made the mocking of conservatives a substantial part of the show’s entertainment menu since he first replaced Craig Kilborn in 1999.

Next, consider Comedy Central’s South Park. Suddenly New York Times readers know all about it. Which isn’t surprising when it’s remembered that the cartoon has become rather popular with the left in concert with the show’s routine critiques of the second Trump administration.

Trump-leaning defenders of Ellison and Paramount will perhaps pivot to his hiring of Bari Weiss to run CBS News. After all, Weiss famously resigned from the left-leaning New York Times and its “hostile work environment” in 2020, but only after leaving the Wall Street Journal in 2017 at least in part due to the traditional right’s growing embrace of Donald Trump. His election in 2016 had her distraught.

No doubt her views on Trump have moderated since, but not too much. Consider the recent announcement at CBS News of its new contributors. The list includes Trump critics like Elliot Ackerman and Derek Thompson, but except for Niall Ferguson it’s hard to find anyone who has regularly or even occasionally sided with Trump. Which isn’t a surprise when it’s remembered that in a profile at Vanity Fair, Weiss was described as a “Trump-loathing theater nerd.”

Pierce writes that “President Trump has already indicated he is watching the battle over Warner closely and is prepared to intervene in the review process if necessary.” Translated, Pierce expects Trump to intervene in favor of David Ellison and Paramount. Except that as we see with Ellison’s media properties, his hire of Weiss, and his own political contributions (check out OpenSecrets), Ellison’s presumed conservatism is seemingly of recent vintage. Readers can decide why.

Pierce told Matt Gaetz on Gaetz’s eponymous show that WBD’s acceptance of Netflix’s bid is ideological, and not because Netflix “offered the best return for shareholders.” It’s a sign that Ellison’s seeming political conversion isn’t the only thing that conservatives are glossing over. Visit DuckDuckGo for more information on the staggering returns Netflix shareholders have enjoyed over the years.