Bari Weiss made a major announcement Monday. She’s officially the new editor-in-chief of CBS News — and her outlet, The Free Press, is joining Paramount.
“We’re a news organization, so I’ll get right to it: This morning, The Free Press is joining Paramount,” Weiss told readers in an email. She called the move a “testament” to her team, Paramount’s vision, and the readers who believed in them from the start.
Weiss, who famously quit The New York Times in 2020 after accusing colleagues of bullying, started the “Common Sense” newsletter a year later. That evolved into The Free Press in 2022 — an independent media company with a fast-growing audience. Paramount’s new owner, David Ellison, had reportedly been eyeing Weiss’s company for months. Now the deal is done.
“We are thrilled to welcome Bari and The Free Press to Paramount and CBS News,” Ellison said. “Bari is a proven champion of independent, principled journalism… We believe the majority of the country longs for news that is balanced and fact-based, and we want CBS to be their home.”
Paramount said Weiss will “shape editorial priorities, champion core values, and lead innovation” across CBS News. She’ll work with CBS News President Tom Cibrowski, while continuing to run The Free Press as CEO and editor-in-chief. The outlet will keep its brand and operate independently, producing news, podcasts, and events. The purchase price? Reportedly $150 million in cash and Paramount stock.
Weiss told subscribers she wants to “marry the quality of the old world to the freedom of the new.” Her mission remains clear — “seek the truth and tell it plainly.” She rejected claims that honest journalism is dead, writing, “You demonstrated that there’s a market for honest journalism… and you’ve given us a mandate to pursue that mission from an even bigger platform.”
She addressed the elephant in the room: why return to a legacy outlet after leaving one in protest. “Wasn’t The Free Press started precisely because the old media institutions had failed?” she asked. Her answer — the industry has shifted dramatically. “In 2020, when I quit The New York Times, it wasn’t the Times anymore… I wanted to be a part of the new conversations happening outside those places.”
Weiss reflected on how media has transformed in just five years. “As the gatekeepers of the mainstream have failed one after another, an explosion took place,” she wrote. “Overlooked by all these so-called interlocutors are the enormous numbers of smart, politically mixed, pragmatic Americans… the overwhelming majority of the country.”
With 1.5 million subscribers, The Free Press now gains a massive platform under Paramount. Weiss said she’s eager to earn the trust of CBS audiences. “If you’re a CBS News reader or viewer hearing our name for the first time: I am eager to earn your trust,” she wrote. The Free Press will lift its paywall through October 12.