CBS News' Bari Weiss: 'A Lot We Still Don't Know' After Paramount Merger

Bari Weiss, editor-in-chief of CBS News, told staff Tuesday morning that leadership still doesn't have answers about what the newly merged Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery will mean for the news division in the long term.

"The truth is, there is a lot that we still don't know," Weiss said during CBS News' 9 a.m. editorial meeting and in a memo obtained by TheWrap. "What we can tell you right now is that nothing is going to change. This is a process that's going to unfold over time."

The merger, which closed Tuesday, puts CBS News and CNN under the same corporate roof. Skydance has already decided that Mark Thompson will remain atop CNN while Weiss continues to lead CBS News, keeping separate editorial leadership. But broader questions about resources, operations and potential shared functions between the two news organizations are unresolved.

Weiss urged staff to focus on their reporting.

"The best guidance that we can share is that we should focus always on the work that we do," she said.

CBS News president Tom Cibrowski echoed that message, telling employees to "double down" on their work as the corporate transition begins.

"The main thing is that momentum word, the big M word that Bari said," Cibrowski said. "We've got that, the work is fantastic, and now is the time to double down and focus on our work at CBS News."

Employees are expected to hear more during a town hall later Tuesday.

• Bari Weiss
• CBS News
• CNN
• Mark Thompson
• Paramount+
• Warner Bros. Discovery