Kara Swisher says she’ll exit CNN if ‘incompetent’ Paramount Skydance execs takes over

CNN contributor Kara Swisher said she plans to leave the network if the Ellison family and its chosen executives take control following Paramount Skydance’s planned $111 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery.

Swisher made the comments Tuesday, June 30, 2026, on “Pivot,” the podcast she co-hosts with Scott Galloway.

“With the CNN thing, well, you know my feelings on that,” Swisher said. “I mean, I’m leaving as soon as I can.”

The U.S. Department of Justice has cleared the proposed merger, which would combine Paramount Pictures, Paramount+, Warner Bros., HBO Max, CNN and CBS. The transaction still requires approval from regulators in the European Union and U.K.

The deal has raised concerns inside CNN, particularly after recent changes at CBS News under editor in chief Bari Weiss. Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison installed Weiss with a mandate to bring more balance to CBS News, fueling speculation that she could eventually play a role in CNN’s editorial operations.

Galloway noted that Swisher had previously encouraged him to work with CNN.

“That was before,” Swisher responded, pointing to Paramount’s pending acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery and the uncertainty over whether CNN chief executive Mark Thompson will remain in charge.

“I don’t want to work for the Ellisons and I don’t want to work for their handpicked minions because I think they’re incompetent,” Swisher said.

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Swisher added that she enjoys working with CNN’s current team and supports Thompson remaining in the top job.

“I very much like Mark Thompson, and I hope they put him in charge because I think he would do a great job,” she said.

Swisher also criticized the idea of technology executives overseeing news organizations.

“I just don’t see any way that these people make good decisions and I don’t trust them,” she said. “I don’t want to work for tech people.”

Swisher said she remains under contract with CNN through the end of 2026 but hopes to leave earlier.

“There’s lots of other options and I’m under contract with them until the end of the year and I’m hoping they’ll let me out early, because I don’t want to affiliate with them,” Swisher said.

The comments come as CNN staffers wait for more clarity on the network’s future leadership structure. Weiss has been viewed as a possible editorial leader across CBS News and CNN, though Thompson has reportedly resisted sharing control of the network with another executive.