Pop culture and politics are intertwined in the age of Trump. Just look at the Paramount-Skydance merger
Key Takeaways
Also: All the news and watercooler chat from Fortune.
Article Overview
Quick insights and key information
6 min read
Estimated completion
cryptocurrency
Article classification
August 18, 2025
09:19 AM
Fortune
Original publisher
s·CEO DailyPop culture and are intertwined in the age of Trump
Just look at the Paramount-Skydance mergerBy Diane BradyBy Diane BradyExecutive Editorial Director, Fortune Media and author of CEO DailyDiane BradyExecutive Editorial Director, Fortune Media and author of CEO DailyDiane Brady is an award-winning journalist and author who has interviewed newsmakers worldwide and often speaks the global landscape
As executive editorial director of the Fortune CEO Initiative, she brings together a growing community of global leaders through conversations, content, and connections
She is also executive editorial director of Fortune Media and interviews newsmakers for the magazine and the CEO Daily .SEE FULL BIO U.S. ducer David Ellison attends Apple's "Fountain of Youth" premiere at the American Museum of Natural History in New York on May 19, 2025
Charly Triballeau—AFP via Getty ImagesIn today’s CEO Daily: Diane Brady tackles the Paramount-Skydance merger–and how it marks a new age in the of pop culture
The big story: Zelenskyy travels to DC
The : Mixed sentiment as investors wait for a deal
Plus: All the news and watercooler chat from Fortune
My first job in the U.S. included covering Martha Stewart and World Wrestling Entertainment during the dot-com boom
Stewart was a multimedia influencer and doyenne of domesticity; Vince and Linda McMahon had transformed wrestling from a traveling circus of showmen and athletes into a superstar-studded global entertainment phenomenon
Today’s “trad wife” phenomenon or “manosphere” populated by the s of Joe Rogan are not without precedent
Pop culture always reflects and responds to trends in the political sphere, and vice versa
What’s unusual, perhaps, is the degree to which the two worlds have become intertwined
It helps that Trump comes from that world, having spent several years in reality TV and most of his adult life as a media celebrity
Along with installing himself as chairman of the Kennedy Center, President Trump personally picked this year’s list of honorees, which includes Kiss and Sylvester Stallone, and will host what he mises to be an ‘anti-woke’ ceremony
Few CEOs are more attuned to the political winds in Hollywood right now than David Ellison, the new CEO of Paramount ing Skydance Media’s merger with Paramount Global earlier this month
To get the deal done, Skydance agreed to “address bias and restore fact-based reporting,” according to FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr, and appoint an ombudsman to address any concerns bias
Paramount had also reached a $16 million settlement with Trump over a “60 Minutes” interview with Kamala Harris prior to the deal getting done
In one of his first moves as head of the combined Paramount, Ellison last week announced a $7.7 billion agreement to air Ultimate Fighting Championship events over the next seven years
That’s no doubt a smart decision and certainly not lost on Ellison that UFC is a Trump-friendly form of entertainment, as well as a “global sports powerhouse.” UFC CEO Dana White said Ellison negotiated an “all-or-nothing” deal
White is close to Trump, who recently said he’d love to stage a UFC match on the White House lawn. (White also recently joined Meta’s board, too.) Ellison, meanwhile, also struck a multi-year partnership with Taylor Sheridan, the creative mind behind “Yellowstone” and various spinoffs that are with conservative audiences
To grow beyond the $30+ billion it made last year, Paramount will need to appeal to a wide and varied demographic
While its cancellation of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” sparked accusations of -Trump bias, Paramount’s recent $1.5 billion ing deal with “South Park” creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone suggests that Ellison understands the power of polarizing entertainment on both sides of the house
CEO Daily via Diane Brady at diane.brady@fortune.comTop newsZelenskyy goes to DC…Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is in Washington DC today, joined by European leaders including European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen
The meeting s an inconclusive meeting between U.S
President Donald Trump and Russia President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday
On social media, Trump ruled out Ukraine joining NATO, or getting back Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014.…and China's top diplomat goes to DelhiChinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is in India for a trip aimed at repairing a relationship that’s been cool since deadly border clashes in 2020
The dispute has hurt trade and investment between the two Asian economic powers
Both countries also face steep U.S. tariffs: Trump’s decision to slap 50% tariffs on India now threatens a broader strategy to make the South Asian country an alternative to China
Ignite’s AI-induced layoffsSoftware developer Ignite laid off nearly 80% of its employees within a year to make way for generative AI
CEO Eric Vaughan tells Fortune that he’d do it again: “It was extremely difficult … But changing minds was harder than adding skills.”Powell to speak on FridayFed Chairman Jerome Powell will give an indication of whether rate cuts will resume next month in a speech on Friday
Some analysts think Powell will keep his cards close to his chest—and may not cut rates in September at all, despite Wall Street hopes of easing
Can OpenAI stay in front?OpenAI’s industry-leading position could be vulnerable, thanks to an underwhelming release of GPT-5 and new open-source challengers China’s DeepSeek
Fortune’s Geoff Colvin investigates how strong the company’s competitive “moat” really is.The S&P 500 futures are down by 0.1% before market open, ing a 0.3% drop by the index on Friday
Japan’s Nikkei 225 is up 0.8%, briefly hitting a record high
The Shanghai Composite rose 0.9%, briefly surpassing a 10-year high
Hong Kong’s benchmark Hang Seng Index fell 0.4%
The South Korea KOSPI is down 1.5%
The STOXX Europe 600 is down 0.1% in early trading, Bitcoin is down 2.5% to fall below $116,000.Around the watercoolerTrump says tariffs are going to be enough to pay down national debt
It ly won’t even touch the sides by Eleanor PringleA millennial couple grew their side hustle into a bringing in $4.5 million a year—here’s how the cofounder would start it again, with nothing by Jessica CoacciTrump could trigger a financial crisis in Russia — if he wants to — but has backed off from his threat of ‘very severe consequences’ by Jason Ma Nvidia and AMD’s ‘special treatment’ from Trump is shaking up an already tangled global chip supply chain by Nicholas GordonMeta spends more guarding Mark Zuckerberg than Apple, Nvidia, Microsoft, Amazon, and Alphabet do for their own CEOs—combined by Dave SmithThis edition of CEO Daily was compiled and edited by Joey Abrams and Nicholas Gordon.This is the web version of CEO Daily, a of must-read global insights from CEOs and industry leaders. to get it dered free to your inbox.
Related Articles
More insights from FinancialBooklet