From WNYC, I'm Brian Ler.

This is my daily politics podcast.

It's Monday, June 22.

The deal to merge Paramount and Warner Brothers is now signed and on track to close this year.

If it goes through, one company controlled by David Ellison and his family would own

two of Hollywood's biggest studios, Paramount and Warner Brothers,

two of the largest streaming services, Paramount Plus and HBO Max,

and two major newsrooms, CBS News and CNN, along with cable brands from MTV and Comedy Central to TNT,

HGTV, and the Discovery channels. Now, last week, former federal regulator Alvaro Badoia came through

New York on a three-city tour sitting down with people in the business, writers, grips,

costume designers, caterers, and independent theater owners who say a merger this size is going

to impact them.

Badoia spent three years as a commissioner at the Federal Trade Commission, serving alongside

then-chair Lena Kahn, as the agency took on big tech and corporate consolidation in various ways,

until President Trump fired Badoia in March of last year.

He came into that job as an advocate for privacy and immigrant rights.

He says he left it a populist.

In an essay written for the new republic, he argues the

real fight in this country isn't left versus right. It's the money at the top against everyone

underneath. He's now a senior advisor at a group called the American Economic Liberties Project

and joins us now. Alvaro, welcome to WNYC.

Hey, thank you for having me. What is the American

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