Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders approve Paramount takeover
David Zaslav, CEO & President, Warner Bros. Discovery at TCL Chinese Theatre on April 07, 2026 in Hollywood, California. (Monica Schipper/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders on Thursday voted to approve the Paramount Skydance takeover bid, completing a major step toward the $111 billion media mega-deal.
The offer from Paramount encompasses the HBO Max streaming service, the Warner Bros. film production company, and cable channels such as CNN. Assets owned by Paramount include CBS, Paramount Pictures and Comedy Central, among others.
Shareholders cast ballots “overwhelmingly” in support of the Paramount takeover, Warner Bros. Discovery said in a statement.
“Today’s stockholder approval is another key milestone toward completing this historic transaction that will deliver exceptional value to our stockholders. We will continue to work with Paramount to complete the remaining steps in this process that will create a leading, next-generation media and entertainment company,” Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav said in the statement.
Shares of Paramount fell nearly 5% in the minutes following the announcement on Thursday morning.
In December, Paramount launched a hostile takeover bid to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery, just days after Netflix struck a deal to purchase a large part of the media giant.
The rival, multi-billion-dollar efforts to acquire streaming platform Warner Bros. Discovery threatened to upend the media industry and shape content viewed by hundreds of millions of people.
Paramount appeared to gain the upper hand in the bidding war in recent months. In February, the Warner Bros. Discovery board of directors voted unanimously to recommend approval of the Paramount takeover.
Under the terms of the deal, shareholders will receive $31 per share, which amounts to a 147% premium, Warner Bros. Discovery said in March.
Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — The Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted more than 650 points in early trading on Friday as the Iran war continued to spike oil prices.
The Dow fell 657 points, or 1.3%, while the S&P 500 dropped 1.2%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq declined 1%.
In a post on social media on Friday morning, President Donald Trump appeared to rule out a compromise with Iran.
Trump said there would be “no deal with Iran except UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!”
Oil prices soared as traders feared a prolonged blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, a trading route that facilitates the transport of about one-fifth of global oil supply.
U.S. crude oil prices topped $88 on Friday, marking a staggering 35% increase from a week earlier.
The stock selloff on Friday extended losses from a day earlier, when the Dow closed down 785 points.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Workers at Spirit Airlines wait for passengers to arrive for their flights at O’Hare Airport on March 10, 2026 in Chicago, Illinois. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump said an announcement was expected Friday on Spirit Airlines, amid a report that the airline was preparing to cease operations after a $500 million rescue deal fell apart.
The Wall Street Journal first reported that the airline is preparing to shut down operations.
When asked if the administration had decided against bailing out Spirit Airlines, Trump told reporters on Friday, “I guess we’re looking at it. If we could do it, we do it, but only if it’s a good deal.”
“No institution’s been able to do it,” he continued. “I said ‘I’d like to save the jobs,’ but we’ll have an announcement sometime today. We gave them, we gave them a final proposal.”
This is a developing story, check back for updates.
Kevin Warsh, former governor of the US Federal Reserve, during the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank Spring meetings on Friday, April 25, 2025. (Tierney L. Cross/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump’s selection to chair the Federal Reserve, Kevin Warsh, testified in a Senate confirmation hearing on Tuesday as his nomination faces bipartisan opposition centered on a federal criminal investigation into the central bank’s current leader.
The probe into Fed Chair Jerome Powell, which focuses on alleged false testimony to Congress about an office renovation, threatens to derail or delay Warsh’s nomination.
Powell, who was appointed by Trump in 2017, has rebuked the probe as a politically motivated effort to influence interest-rate policy.
In his opening remarks, Warsh voiced support for the independence of the Fed in its role setting interest rates. He used the term “monetary policy” to describe the central bank’s task of adjusting benchmark borrowing costs.
“Monetary policy independence is essential. Monetary policymakers must act in the nation’s interest,” said Warsh, a former Fed official.
Still, Warsh defended the right of public officials, including presidents, to voice their views on interest-rate policy, saying such comments do not infringe on Fed independence.
“Central bankers must be strong enough to listen to a diversity of views from all corners,” Warsh said.
Warsh said he welcomes collaboration with the White House and Congress on “non-monetary matters that are part of the Fed’s remit,” such as banking regulation.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., the top Democrat on the committee, responded directly to Warsh’s defense of a president’s right to criticize the Fed, saying the federal investigation of Powell amounts to a pressure campaign that extends beyond public criticism of Fed policies.
“You said it’s perfectly fine for elected officials to state their views on interest rates. But that’s not what Donald Trump is doing,” Warren said, addressing Warsh.
The investigation of Powell, Warren added, is “designed to threaten all the members of the Fed to do Trump’s bidding.”
Warsh may become Trump’s “sock puppet” atop the Fed, Warren said.
By contrast, Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., the chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, praised Warsh, saying the Fed nominee would focus Fed policy on economic stewardship. During the tenure of President Joe Biden, Scott claimed, the Fed shifted some of its attention to the implications of issues like climate change.
“An independent Federal Reserve is essential to achieving its mission. That independence must be protected,” Scott said.
“Kevin Warsh is battle-tested and brings the necessary experience,” Scott added.
Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., a potentially decisive vote on the committee, says he will not move to advance Warsh’s nomination until the Department of Justice resolves its unprecedented investigation into Powell.
Powell’s term as Fed chair ends on May 15, but he said last month he would stay in the position until Warsh is confirmed. For his part, Trump told Fox Business last week he would fire Powell if the current Fed chair attempts to remain in office past the end of his term.
Warsh, who previously worked on Wall Street and in the President George W. Bush administration, brings experience in finance and policymaking.
He is currently a fellow at a conservative think tank called the Hoover Institution, which is based at Stanford University. He also works as a partner at the Duquesne Family Office, an investment firm founded by billionaire and former hedge fund manager Stanley Druckenmiller.
In 2006, Bush appointed Warsh to serve on the Fed’s Board of Governors, a top policymaking body that helps set the level of interest rates, where he served until 2011. His tenure overlapped with the 2008 financial crisis, during which he helped manage the central bank’s response under then-Chair Ben Bernanke.
The nomination of Warsh arrives at a delicate moment for the Fed, as it grapples with a challenging combination of elevated inflation and sluggish hiring. An interest-rate hike could help ease inflation but risks a further cooldown of the labor market, while a rate cut may boost hiring but threatens higher inflation.
During his term as a Fed governor in the late 2000s and early 2010s, Warsh gained a reputation as an interest-rate “hawk,” meaning he generally preferred higher interest rates as a means of ensuring low and stable inflation.
In recent months, however, Warsh has voiced support for lower interest rates, rebuking the Fed’s concern about inflation risk posed by a flurry of new tariffs issued last year.
Those remarks came before the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran, however, which sent inflation soaring last month.
The rapid acceleration of price increases could complicate interest rate policy at the Fed, which may be reluctant to lower borrowing costs as inflation climbs.
