Paramount Reaches $16 Million Settlement With Donald Trump in ‘60 Minutes’ Lawsuit

Paramount has reached an agreement in principle to settle Donald Trump’s lawsuit against “60 Minutes” for $16 million.

The settlement payment includes “plaintiffs’ fees and costs” as well as a donation that will be allocated to a “future presidential library.” Paramount also said that “in the future, 60 Minutes will release transcripts of interviews with eligible U.S. presidential candidates after such interviews have aired, subject to redactions as required for legal or national security concerns.”

Notably, the settlement does not include any statement of apology or regret from CBS or “60 Minutes.”

According to Paramount, CBS’s parent company, the terms were proposed by the mediator in the litigation. Trump will not receive any money directly or indirectly and he will release all of his claims, including those of defamation.

Trump had sued CBS for $20 billion over an Oct. 7 “60 Minutes” interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris, which he claimed caused him “mental anguish” after being deceptively edited to make her look good.

He also alleged that its “false advertising and tampering” withheld viewers’ attention from him and his social media platform Truth Social, resulting in a decrease in value for Trump Media and Technology Group and his other media holdings, while also violating the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act.

The complaint specifically took aim at Harris’ response to a question on whether Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was listening to the Biden administration, which was different in the final cut that aired compared to an earlier promo on “Face the Nation.”

CBS News maintained that Trump’s accusations of deceitful editing were false, explaining that the promo shown on “Face the Nation” used a longer section of Harris’ answer. It also turned over the transcript and camera footage from the interview to the FCC as part of the agency’s investigation into allegations of “news distortion.”

In a recent court filing, CBS’ lawyers slammed the suit as “meritless” and said it was an attempt to “evade bedrock First Amendment principles.” They added that Trump had “not plausibly alleged that he personally suffered ‘an injury to a commercial interest in reputation or sales’” and that the Harris interview and promo were “fully protected editorial speech.”

The resolution of the high-stakes legal battle comes after the Wall Street Journal previously reported that Trump shot down Paramount’s offer to settle the lawsuit for $15 million. The president was initially aiming to get at least $25 million and an apology.

It also comes as Paramount is set to hold its annual shareholder meeting on Wednesday morning, where three new board members are set to stand election, among other proposals.

Additionally, the media giant is awaiting FCC approval of its pending $8 billion merger with David Ellison’s Skydance Media due to a required transfer of broadcast licenses, which executives have said would close in the first half of 2025.

Under the two-step deal, Skydance is set to acquire controlling shareholder Shari Redstone’s holding company National Amusements, which controls 77.4% of the Paramount Class A common stock outstanding and approximately 9.5% of the overall equity of the company, before merging with the Hollywood studio.

The deal’s first automatic 90-day extension, which was triggered in April, is set to expire next week. If the second extension is triggered, the closing deadline would be pushed to Oct. 6. Paramount and Skydance would then have the option of terminating the deal, which would not be subject to the agreement’s $400 million breakup fee.

Observers believe that the settlement was the final hurdle in order to get the merger across the finish line. Both Paramount and FCC chairman Brendan Carr have previously said that the lawsuit and settlement talks with Trump were unrelated to the agency’s review of the Skydance deal.

But Carr has also warned that “all options remain on the table” in the agency’s ongoing investigation into alleged “news distortion” related to the Harris interview, including potentially revoking CBS’ broadcast license if the network is found to have violated the agency’s public interest standard.

The FCC typically makes decisions within an informal 180-day timeframe, but there is nothing requiring them do so within that window.

As part of the review, the agency has received petitions from various parties who are asking for conditions to be placed on the merger’s closing, which Skydance and Paramount have asked the agency to reject. Some shareholders have also sued or threatened to sue Paramount and Skydance over the deal, alleging that it prioritizes Redstone over the rest of the company’s investors.

When asked by reporters last month whether he sees the agency’s review being resolved soon, Trump replied: “I hope so. Ellison’s great, he’ll do a great job with it.”

While Paramount and CBS no longer have to worry about Trump’s lawsuit, they’ve faced pressure from both insiders at the network and federal and California State Senate lawmakers not to settle. The group, along with legal experts, have all said that Trump’s lawsuit was frivolous and without merit.

Senators Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Ron Wyden and California Senate Democrats have all warned Redstone that a settlement in exchange for regulatory approval could constitute a violation of federal anti-bribery laws. While legal experts who previously spoke to TheWrap didn’t rule out legal action due to a settlement, they have dismissed the notion of bribery charges as a “non-case.” 

The California lawmakers have already launched an investigation into the matter, inviting former “60 Minutes” executive producer Bill Owens and former CBS News president Wendy McMahon to testify. Owens and McMahon both resigned in part over their opposition to settling the lawsuit, as well as what Owens saw as corporate interference in the program’s editorial decision making.

In an interview with TheWrap at the premiere of the documentary “Children of October 7,” Redstone declined to publicly address the resignations or “60 Minutes” suit, but said there is “nothing controversial about telling the truth.”

“I think companies have not only an opportunity, but a tremendous responsibility, to use the resources that they have to tell these stories and to get them to as many audiences, let people decide how they feel about something and how they react to something, but give them the facts,” she added.

Asked how she balanced press freedom with the financial demands of media companies, Redstone said, “I don’t think there’s ever a time you have to compromise what it is that you say and do, but freedom of the press involves telling both sides of the story, giving the facts, not giving opinions. And I think that’s our responsibility as a media company.”

Paramount’s settlement comes after Disney previously paid $15 million to settle a defamation lawsuit Trump brought against ABC News and star anchor George Stephanopoulos. Meta also paid $25 million to settle Trump’s lawsuit about being kicked off Facebook and Instagram after the attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

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