Meet the billionaires who control your media
It's Been a Minute
NPR
4.7 • 9.2K Ratings
🗓️ 20 March 2026
⏱️ 21 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
With the help of his father, Paramount CEO David Ellison's purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery has gained him a roster of franchises and networks, from Looney Tunes to CNN. But the sale hasn't come without serious concerns, from data privacy to the rising costs of streaming services to what this means for workers in the entertainment industry.
Brittany is joined by Mandalit Del Barco, NPR culture correspondent, and David Folkenflik, NPR media correspondent, to cut through the corporate drama and figure out what this deal means for all of us.
(0:00) Why Brittany thinks you should be interested in the Paramount/Warner Bros deal
(4:12) How this deal will impact journalism and what you watch on TV
(7:19) Who are the Ellisons? And what's their relationship to Trump?
(11:49) Why cuts to the entertainment industry impact the entire country
(16:45) Who really controls American culture: the people or the rich & powerful?
Interested in more TV conversations? Check out these episodes:
Sinners vs. One Battle After Another: who should win Best Picture?
Melania Trump’s multi-million dollar “infomercial”
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | So there are two types of people in the world. Those who care about major media business deals |
| 0:07.9 | and those who don't. Lucky for you, I do care. And if you are one of those people who |
| 0:13.8 | doesn't, don't worry. By the end of this episode, I will have convinced you that this business |
| 0:19.6 | deal matters. |
| 0:25.5 | I'm talking about David Ellison and Paramount's acquisition of Warner Brothers Studios. |
| 0:33.8 | If you don't know who David Ellison is, think of his father, Larry Ellison, as someone akin to Logan Roy from HBO's succession. |
| 0:40.7 | Larry used his fortune to help David become a powerful media magnate, slowly but surely expanding his media empire, which now includes major franchises like Harry Potter and Mission Impossible. |
| 0:47.3 | But he'll also now have ownership over CNN, CBS News, and TikTok should this deal officially go through. |
| 0:55.4 | Now, that's a lot of influence. |
| 0:58.0 | Are you okay with one family having that much control over the media? |
| 1:02.6 | You watch? |
| 1:04.1 | Great questions. |
| 1:05.7 | And that is why we have NPR media correspondent David Fulkenflick |
| 1:08.7 | and NPR culture correspondent Mandelaide Del Barco |
| 1:11.9 | on the show today to help you and me answer that question. Hi y'all, welcome to the show. Thanks. |
| 1:18.3 | Hey, Brittany. So good to have you both. Hello, hello. I'm Brittany loose and you're listening to It's |
| 1:26.5 | Been a Minute from NPR. A show about what's going on in culture and why it doesn't happen by accident. |
| 1:39.8 | Okay, so David and Mandali, why do you think everyone listening should care about this deal? |
| 1:46.2 | What are the stakes in each of your minds? Mondellit, we'll start with you. |
| 1:50.3 | Oh, well, thanks so much for asking. If you're a movie lover like me, you might care about this deal. |
| 1:58.4 | Warner Brothers is a legacy movie studio started 100 years ago. And it's like what David Ellison would get in this deal would be like the crown jewels of that studio. You know, Warner Brothers made the first talkie movie, the jazz singer. Too, tutu-tut-tut-turti, goodbye. Don't cry. Tut, touch, thirsty, The Jazz Singer. Two, Toot, Twitty, goodbye. |
| 2:19.6 | Tut, touchy, don't cry. |
... |
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