Swisher Warns She Will Walk If Paramount Buys CNN

Kara Swisher has made her position on Paramount’s possible acquisition of CNN very clear, and she chose her words carefully: “Fuck these guys.”

The longtime tech reporter and actress has been an on-air contributor to CNN since 2023. Now that Paramount’s bid to take over Warner Bros. Discovery looks increasingly likely, Swisher is pulling out. She told her Pivot co-host, Scott Galloway, last week that she has asked her agent to get her out of her contract, which expires on December 31.

“I just can’t,” she said.

Swisher’s Exit Plan

Swisher went through a period of doubt. She said she tried to “figure out ways I could work with them in some licensing way.” But she ultimately came back to the decision she announced in June.

“But then I thought, ‘Fuck these guys! I don’t want to work for them. I just don’t,'” she concluded.

The aviators are gone, and the message is blunt. Swisher is taking her aviators elsewhere if Paramount takes CNN.

What Happens Next

Swisher’s contract ends at the end of the year. That gives her a clean exit point regardless of whether the deal closes. Her request to her agent suggests she wants out even if the deal falls through, though she has not said publicly what happens if the acquisition goes ahead.

Her comments on Pivot were direct.

The timing is notable. Swisher is making her stance public while the deal is still pending. She has made her position clear early.

Here is the sequence of events:

1. Swisher has been an on-air contributor to CNN since 2023.
2. She told her Pivot co-host, Scott Galloway, last week that she has asked her agent to get her out of her contract.
3. She said she tried to “figure out ways I could work with them in some licensing way.”
4. She ultimately decided she does not want to work for them.
5. Her contract expires on December 31.

Swisher’s decision is a statement about the direction of news media. As Paramount consolidates control over more outlets, individual voices like Swisher’s are making choices about where they belong. Her exit is a warning signal to other contributors who might find themselves under new management.

Swisher is taking her aviators elsewhere if Paramount takes CNN.

See the video the story is built around at The A.V. Club.

CNN · Kara Swisher · Paramount · TV news · Warner Bros. Discovery