Can Paramount "gift" its way past the FCC?

Summary of Can Paramount "gift" its way past the FCC?

by NPR

9m•July 23, 2026
Listen to Episode

Overview of Can Paramount "gift" its way past the FCC?

This NPR Indicator episode examines a ProPublica investigation into whether FCC commissioners accepted expensive gifts from Paramount Skydance while the company had major business before the agency. The central concern is a potential conflict of interest: the FCC is responsible for approving parts of a massive media deal involving Paramount, yet commissioners allegedly took gifts worth tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars from the company.

Key Findings

Gifts tied to a company seeking FCC approval

  • ProPublica reporter Corey Johnson found that FCC leaders attended the Kennedy Center Honors while Paramount was involved in a major merger-related regulatory process.
  • FCC Chair Brendan Carr and Commissioner Olivia Trusty were present at the event.
  • Trusty reportedly accepted more than $12,000 in tickets as a gift from Paramount.
  • Carr and his wife sat in a private skybox with Paramount CEO David Ellison; a pair of those seats could be worth around $250,000, though Carr’s disclosure had not yet been made public.

A broader pattern of gift-taking

  • Johnson found Carr had accepted tickets worth about $63,000 on at least seven prior occasions.
  • The practice was not limited to one party: Democratic FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez also accepted tickets to the Honors gala in 2023 and 2024.

Ethics rules and red flags

  • Federal ethics rules generally prohibit officials from accepting things of value from entities they regulate or that are seeking government action.
  • Ethics experts consulted by ProPublica were reportedly alarmed.
  • The rules also require documentation when an ethics official approves attendance at a potentially restricted event, but ProPublica said the FCC had not provided that documentation.

Why This Matters

Paramount’s high-stakes business before the FCC

  • Paramount Skydance is pursuing a major deal worth $111 billion and needs FCC approval.
  • The company is also seeking a waiver of the FCC’s 25% foreign ownership cap, because financing for the deal involves sovereign wealth funds from Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi, and Qatar.
  • Because Paramount owns 28 local TV stations, FCC licensing and ownership rules directly affect the company’s future.

Trust and the appearance of corruption

  • The episode emphasizes that even if something is not criminal, it can still violate ethics rules meant to prevent corruption or the appearance of corruption.
  • The piece frames this as another example of how low public trust in government has become.

Responses and Current Status

FCC’s response

  • The FCC said there was “nothing to see here,” and later stated that ethics officials have historically cleared attendance at the event under Obama, Biden, and Trump administrations.

What should happen under the rules

  • If a gift is improper, employees are generally supposed to return it or pay for it.
  • They may also face disciplinary action or be required to recuse themselves from related decisions.

The merger is not settled

  • A federal judge temporarily paused the deal for 14 days for a separate reason: a lawsuit by state attorneys general arguing the merger may violate the Clayton Act.

Bottom Line

The episode argues that Paramount’s expensive hospitality toward FCC officials creates at least the appearance of a serious ethics problem at the exact moment the company needs regulatory approval. Even if the FCC insists its officials followed long-standing practice, the investigation raises doubts about whether those practices are compatible with federal ethics rules and public trust.