New York investor Soo Kim, who founded Standard General, has been approached by at least one major Warner Bros. Discovery shareholder about buying CNN, according to a report.
Kim has been in talks about potentially buying or investing in WBD’s cable assets, which include CNN, TNT, Discovery Channel and Animal Planet, people briefed on the matter told the Financial Times.
Those TV networks are slated to be spun off into a separate company, as Netflix has agreed to buy WBD’s studio and streaming business in a $72 billion deal – though Paramount has submitted a hostile bid to take over the entire company and accused WBD of failing to properly negotiate.
Standard General and Warner Bros. Discovery did not immediately respond to The Post’s requests for comment.
An investment from Kim could provide a vote of confidence in the flailing cable assets, which are reportedly facing a heavy debt load and shrinking TV audience, according to the report.
It would fall in line with previous investments from Kim, who’s known as a “vulture capitalist” – investing in flailing properties and casinos as he built up his gambling empire.
Kim’s properties include 15 Bally’s casinos across 10 states, as well as a horse racetrack in Colorado and a Ferry Point golf course that he bought from the Trump Organization last year for tens of millions of dollars.
Just this week, Bally’s won one of three coveted licenses to build a New York City casino, which it plans to construct at the Ferry Point site.
Kim has since set his sights on the struggling television business. In 2010, Standard General bought Young Broadcasting out of bankruptcy, merged it with rival media companies and sold it to Nexstar Broadcasting.
In 2022, he announced a $9 billion deal to acquire local TV station giant Tegna with financing from private equity firm Apollo – but the deal fell apart in 2023 after facing heated regulatory opposition.
Meanwhile, WBD’s board members have unanimously urged shareholders to reject Paramount Skydance’s $78 billion hostile bid for the company, which would include CNN.
In a heated statement on Wednesday, it blasted the bid as “illusory” and claimed Paramount lacked secure funding, failing to meet the bar of a “superior proposal” from Netflix.
Paramount’s offer comes with “significant risks and costs imposed on our shareholders,” and does not offer regulatory benefits compared to the Netflix deal, WBD board chair Samuel Di Piazza Jr. said in a statement.
It also alleged the Ellison family – the wealthy billionaires behind Paramount Skydance – has not provided an “equity backstop” for the bid, or a guarantee to make up for any potential collapse in financing.
Paramount quickly refuted the claims, stating: “Paramount has lined up all necessary financing to deliver its offer to WBD shareholders, and it is not subject to any financing conditions.”
It accused WBD of refusing to properly negotiate with Paramount or its advisors, instead unfairly favoring Netflix.
Warner Bros. said it took dozens of calls and meetings with bidders including the Ellisons, and even raised its concerns about the financing and gave them several chances to improve their offer.
Larry Ellison, who founded Oracle, and his son David, chief executive of Paramount Skydance, have no immediate plans to increase their offer above $30 a share in cash, The Post previously reported.
But they do plan to cover the deal’s $2.8 billion breakup fee if investors side with their offer.
Netflix’s deal is worth $27.75 a share in cash and stock.
WBD said Wednesday that several potential buyers expressed interest in its TV assets, though it did not specify any names.
