Overview

• Claudia Milne, who led standards and practices since 2021, confirmed her departure on Thursday in the first senior executive exit since Bari Weiss’ hiring and the appointment of an ombudsman.
• In a farewell memo, Milne urged colleagues to hold the powerful to account and to maintain fair, balanced, and unbiased reporting.
• Weiss assumed control of editorial direction after Paramount Skydance acquired her outlet The Free Press for about $150 million and she now reports directly to CEO David Ellison.
• Paramount Skydance installed Kenneth R. Weinstein, a former Trump adviser and Hudson Institute leader, as ombudsman to monitor reporting and adjudicate bias complaints.
• Newsroom tensions remain evident, with the Writers Guild of America East advising members to disregard a recent Weiss information request and scrutiny heightened by Paramount’s $16 million settlement with President Trump over a 60 Minutes dispute.