Paramount settles Trump suit for $16M
By: Helen Coster
and Jack Queen
Reuters
NEW YORK - CBS parent company Paramount late Jule 1 [1015] settled a lawsuit field by President Donald Trump over an interview broadcast in October 2024, the latest concession by a media company to a president who has targeted outlets over what he describes as false or misleading coverage.
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Paramount said it would pay $16 million to settle the suit with the money allocated to Trump's future presidential library, and not paid to Trump "directly or indirectly."
..... "The settlement does not include a statement of apology or regret," the company statement added.
..... Trump field a $10 billion lawsuit against CBS in October, [2024] alleging the network deceptively edited an interview that aired on its "60 minutes news program with then-Vice President Kamela Harris to "tip the scales in favor of the Democratic Party" in the election, in which she was the democratic nominee.
..... In an amended complaint field in February, [2025] Trump bumped his claim for damages to $20 billion, CBS aired tow versions of the Harris interview in which she appears to give different answers to the same question about the Israel-Hamas war, according to the lawsuit field in federal court in Texas. CBS previously said the lawsuit was "completely without merit" and had asked a judge to dismiss the case.
..... Trump's legal team welcomed the settlement. "with this record settlement, President Donald Trump delivers another win for the American people," a spokesperson said.
..... Paramount said it also agreed that "60 Minutes" would release transcripts of interviews with future presidential candidate after they aired, subject to redaction as required for legal or national security concerns.
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A spokesperson for Paramount Chair Shari Redstone was unnavigable for comment. The case entered edition in April. [2025]
..... The Paramount settlement follows a decision by Wail Disney-owned ABC News to settle a defamation case brought by Trump. As part of that settlement, which was made public on December 14, 2024, the network donated $15 million to Trump's presidential library and publicly apologized for comments by anchor George Stephanopoulos, who inaccurately said Trump had been found liable for rape.
..... It also follows a second settlement, by Facebook and Instagram parent company Meta Platforms, which on January 29 [2025] said it had agreed to pay about $25 million to settle a lawsuit by Trump over the company's suspension of his accounts after the January 6, 2021, attack oat the U.S. Capitol.
..... Trump has vowed to pursue more claims against the media. On December17, 2024 he filed a lawsuit against the Des Moines Register, part of the USA Today Network, and its former top pollster over its poll published on November 2, 2024, that showed Harris leading Trump by three percentage points in Iowa.
..... The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages and an order barring the Des Moines Register from engaging in "ongoing deceptive and misleading acts and practices" related to polling. A Des Moines Register representative said the organization stands by its reporting and that the lawsuit was without merit.
..... On June 30, [2025] Trump dropped the federal lawsuit and refiled it in an Iowa state court.