With the approaching vice-presidential debate on the horizon, the electorate may want to be aware of one extremely important fact: 15 billionaires and six corporations own most of the big box media, including CBS, the next in line to host the candidates. And, of course, either by coincident or design, the network is riddled with mega-donors to the Democratic Party and its candidates.
CBS, owned by Paramount, has a heavy load of significant benefactors – and a few not-so-impressive supporters behind nearly every office door. Conversely, there aren't many funds flowing into Republican coffers. It is obvious where the mega media giant has planted its flag.
CBS Cha-Chings for Democratic Causes and Candidates
Big money pours from the Paramount spigot. According to the company’s about page, Paramount brands include Paramount – of course – CBS, CMT, BET, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon, and many more.
"Now you know," as CBS likes to say, how powerful the venue is and how plentiful the audience is.
Just a sampling of the FEC records helps paint a picture of influence. Charles E. Phillips Jr., a member of Paramount's board of directors, is a successful businessman with his thumbprints all over Wall Street and Silicon Valley. He sits on many corporate boards of directors, including the Black Economic Alliance Foundation. Between 2020 and 2023, Phillips donated $100,000 each to Biden, Harris, and former Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Judith A. McHale, another paramount board member, has control of the purse strings: She chairs the compensation committee. A quick tally that includes handouts to the Biden Victory Fund in 2020 and 2023 and the Democratic National Committee comes to a nice round number of $247,900.
Paul Wiser, the Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of Paramount, is the one wolf in sheep's designer wool. Wiser has contributed marginal amounts ($870.50) to WinRed, former Ambassador Nikki Haley, and former Gov. Chris Christie for president.
The plethora of Democratic donors running amok, from the kid in the mail room to the CEO at CBS, begs the question: Will the vice-presidential debate be fair to both candidates?
Vice-Presidential Debate Clean Up
Pundits and analysts alike have been decidedly critical of the Harris-Trump debate. Lindsay Davis and David Muir moderated with a heavy hand for Kamala, never live fact-checking anything she said. On the other end of the stage, Donald Trump barely made a statement before the moderators had a different answer and interjected on behalf of the vice president. The entire event didn't pass the sniff test. Frankly, Trump did not perform well. But that doesn’t change the fact the moderators were anything but neutral.
Ohio Sen. JD Vance and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz are set to face off on Oct. 1. What kinds of questions will moderators Norah O'Donnell and Margaret Brennan ask? Will scrutiny scare them straight? Neither of the debate moderators appear to have made any political donations during their tenure at CBS – but neither do they sign their own hefty million-dollar paychecks.
It all comes down to journalistic ethics – media, especially television broadcast networks, should not interfere with political election campaigns. And media billionaire-owned conglomerates should be on everyone’s watchlist.
