FCC Chairman Brendan Carr was asked to respond to criticisms of the Trump administration's intervention in the free press.

Paramount had said it expected to close the $8.4 billion merger in the first half of 2025. But the first half of the year came and went, and the merger remained under review by the FCC and its chair Brendan Carr, who had been appointed to the role earlier this year by President Trump.

The Federal Communications Commission has approved the $8 billion merger of Paramount Global and Skydance Media, claiming “significant changes,” are coming to the CBS owner.

The merger between Skydance Media and Paramount Global is now official, following final approval from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC)

The Federal Communications Commission Thursday approved Skydance's $8 billion acquisition of Paramount, paving the way for "one of the most highly scrutinized media deals in the last decade," said The New York Times.

FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez issued a scathing statement of dissent following the FCC's approval of the Paramount and Skydance Media merger on Thursday

With the FCC having cleared the Skydance Media-Paramount merger and the deal set to close in a matter of weeks, Paramount Global co-CEO Chris McCarthy will leave the media conglomerate, a company source confirmed to Variety.