"Morning Joe" co-host Joe Scarborough warned Republicans they will suffer "blowback" for the $8 billion Paramount-Skydance merger

The FCC's approval, which was necessary for the deal to move forward, caps a long-running corporate saga over the fate of Paramount, which owns Paramount+, the Paramount Pictures movie and television studios, the CBS television network and CBS News and Stations. Paramount also owns Nickelodeon, BET, MTV, Comedy Central and other media brands.

Upon the deal’s closing, Skydance and its financial partners are set inject $1.5 billion in cash into Paramount. However, that’s intended to go toward reducing Paramount’s long-term debt ($14.16 billion as of Q1 of 2025) to help stabilize its balance sheet.

Skydance got an immediate taste of the public relations headaches that come with the studio’s powerful, Trump-baiting talent.

Shares of Paramount are set to open higher after the FCC approval its merger but amid ongoing uncertainty about its strategic plans under Skydance Media.

Plus, Hulk Hogan, the pro wrestler who brought the sport to new heights of mainstream popularity, died at the age of 71.

Shares of Paramount ticked lower on Friday following news that the FCC has cleared the way for the closing of the media giant's $8 billion merger with Skydance Media. "Now that the long, drawn-out sale process is finally nearing its end,

Skydance Media offered olive branches to the Federal Communications Commission in order to secure approval for its $8 billion acquisition of Paramount Global, and those overtures achieved the desired result.

After a long, complicated slog toward Thursday’s FCC approval, Paramount Global and Skydance Media will now face a number of tricky questions in becoming one company. While the $8 billion-plus transaction will need a few more days to become official,