Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos was launched into the middle of a congressional culture war on Tuesday as he testified before a Senate subcommittee about the company’s effort to buy a large portion of Warner Bros. Discovery.
The hearing before the Senate Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee highlighted a series of traditional merger concerns on both sides of the aisle: the deal could potentially raise costs for consumers, limit their theater experiences, or shrink the market for entertainment jobs. But a large portion of the session also focused on Netflix’s allegedly “woke” programming, including content featuring transgender characters.
Netflix faces a competing bid from Paramount Skydance, run by CEO David Ellison, a close ally of President Donald Trump and the son of Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison. The WBD has rejected Paramount’s proposal, but Republicans are pushing to drop Netflix from the race.
“Why in the world would we give you a seal of approval or a thumbs-up to create the biggest content-related giant on the planet?” Senator Eric Schmidt (R-MO) asked. “It seems as if you are engaged in not only creating a monopoly on content, potentially, but also creating the worst content in the history of the world.”
After Subcommittee Ranking Member Cory Booker (D-NJ) began his questioning of Schmidt by saying he would return to the topic of antitrust, Senator Ashley Moody (R-FL) countered that the material question was relevant to the topic at hand. “If there are people across America who are already struggling with their limited options,” she told officials, “you’re proposing that you go even bigger, and I’m just saying maybe this shouldn’t have been a joke, ‘Let’s get back to antitrust,’ let’s actually talk about what the options would be.”
Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) took a strong stance on the question of whether Netflix would commit to using union labor and paying residuals on streaming content, asking “Why is it that so much of Netflix’s content for children promotes a transgender ideology?” Hawley alleged that “about half of its content” for minor children, excluding older teenagers, promotes a transgender ideology agenda. Sarandos said he did not know where the alleged number came from, adding that “Netflix has no political agenda of any kind.”
french film cutie It was highlighted during the hearing as an example of extreme sexual material involving children. The film, which was created as a commentary on the sexual exploitation of young girls and which Sarandos said was rated for mature audiences, not children, became a symbol of Netflix’s perceived ideologically driven library. Billionaire and Trump supporter Elon Musk previously led a campaign against shows like Netflix Dead End: Paranormal Park And Baby-Sitters Club For featuring trans characters. GOP lawmakers pointed to Netflix employees’ predominantly Democratic-leaning political donations and its content featuring LGBTQ+ characters as other examples of its bias.
Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) asked Sarandos and WBD Chief Revenue and Strategy Officer Bruce Campbell if they watched the Grammys this weekend (only Sarandos caught the “tail end”). “Are we on stolen ground now?” Cruz asked, apparently referencing a speech by artist Billie Eilish protesting ICE, where she said, “No one is illegal on stolen land.” Both said that they did not know. (The Grammys were broadcast on CBS, which is owned by Paramount Skydance.)
Ellison declined the invitation to attend the hearing because he believed it would not be helpful given the circumstances, Booker said. But Ellison met privately with lawmakers, and Booker described his conversation with her as “fruitful.” Paramount’s bid may raise some concerns, just like Netflix’s, but Ellison’s father’s closeness to President Donald Trump will likely assuage some content concerns for Republicans, and heighten them for Democrats.
Booker expressed deep concerns about whether any transactions would be impartially reviewed by independent enforcers under the Trump administration. Sarandos acknowledged that he met with Trump shortly before the deal was announced, but the deal was not discussed in detail and was not the primary purpose of the conversation. Booker said, “I don’t trust this administration in their assessment, and I just pray to God that what you all hope for going forward, what you all have testified to, is accomplished.”
<a href