Film producers warn Paramount-Warner merger could restrict access to news archives

Combined company would control CNN’s 4 million assets and CBS’ 85 years of footage Britain also cites concerns over news provision, children’s services and streaming services A group of film producers has urged the British culture minister to intervene in the proposed merger of ‌Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros Discovery and protect access to historical news footage used by documentary makers. The appeal follows concerns raised by Culture Minister Lisa Nandy that the deal could reduce media plurality. The merger would place the vast CNN and CBS News archives under common ownership for the first time, ​according to the producers.

In a letter sent this week to the UK government, the Archival Producers Alliance, which represents ​more than 650 specialists in the U.S., the UK and elsewhere who find and license such material, said the ⁠deal would combine two of the world’s most significant news collections. Warner Bros.’ CNN archive holds more than 4 million assets that ​span 45 years of global conflicts, elections and political events. The proposed deal would bring it under the control of Paramount, which also ​owns the CBS News archive, home to 85 years of broadcast news footage and unaired materials, such as outtakes or additional material known as B-roll.

The vast library is the lifeblood of documentary film, but access is granted at the sole discretion of the archive’s ​owner. “Consolidating the CNN and CBS archives under a single corporate owner places the world’s two largest privately held broadcast news collections ​under unified ownership for the first time,” the British government said in letters to the companies on June 30. The film archivists say there are direct consequences for Britain. ‌Documentary ⁠producers can access UK-focused archives like the BBC’s, but they routinely license American news footage to tell stories about war, elections, civil rights and international affairs.