Federal regulators on Thursday approved Paramount's $8 billion merger with Skydance, clearing the way to close the deal.

Skydance has emphasized that the commitments are voluntary. Previously, Skydance and Paramount had argued against conditions imposed by the FCC to mandate benchmarks for viewpoint neutrality, saying that they would be “squarely foreclosed by the First Amendment and Supreme Court precedent.”

FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez issued a scathing statement of dissent following the FCC's approval of the Paramount and Skydance Media merger on Thursday

McCarthy became co-CEO of Paramount, alongside George Cheeks and Brian Robbins, in April 2024. The trio took on the role after the ouster of Bob Bakish as the company was in its first round of negotiations with Skydance. McCarthy is also president of Showtime/MTV Entertainment and oversees the company’s streaming platforms Paramount+ and Pluto TV.

The episode premiered less than two days after Paramount reached a $1.5 billion streaming deal with “South Park” creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone.

Skydance separately promised to appoint a CBS News ombudsman to 'promote transparency and increased accountability' at CBS News. Skydance CEO David Ellison also has met with center-right journalist Bari Weiss.