Until now, the Federal Communications Commission has limited foreign ownership of American media to 25 percent. But the Trump-controlled FCC just increased that number to help out Trump’s billionaire friends, the Ellison family. The Ellison recently bought CBS. They are now trying to buy Warner Brothers Discovery, which includes CNN.

This kind of media consolidation is worrisome, as it portends a narrowing of perspectives.

Oliver Darcy reports in Status, a blog that covers the media:

FCC Clears Ellison’s Foreign Cash: Brendan Carr’s FCC has cleared the way for foreign investors to own nearly half of Paramount s equity as David Ellison moves to finance his proposed $111 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. The agency on Thursday approved Paramount’s request to exceed the 25% foreign-ownership threshold, paving the way for investors from Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Abu Dhabi to collectively hold 38.5% of the company, with total foreign ownership reaching 49.5%. While the approval from the Trump administration removes another regulatory hurdle for Ellison’s acquisition of Warners, it still remains on hold after a dozen states led by California and the Writers Guild, sued to block the merger. 

▶ Anna Gomez, the sole Democrat on the FCC commission, slammed the agency’s approval. “The FCC just let some of the most repressive governments in the world indirectly control nearly all of a combined Paramount-Warner Bros,” she said. “An investment this large in one of America’s biggest media companies doesn’t just buy equity, it secures influence over what gets said and what gets made.”