Tommy Vietor (interviewer) / also appears as host lines

BetterHelp.com slash PSA.

That's BetterHelp, H-E-L-P.com slash PSA.

My guest today is the editor-in-chief of Semaphore and the co-host of the excellent Mixed Signals podcast.

He's also a man who tends to be on the bleeding edge of changes in the media business.

Ben Smith, great to see you.

Thank you for having me, Tommy.

So on Monday, Barry Weiss was named the new editor in chief of CBS News and Paramount, CBS's parent company, bought her startup, The Free Press, for $150 million in cash and stock.

My first question to you is the question that everyone is asking, Ben, which is how much do we think Barry cleared off this deal?

Do you know what her ownership stake was by the end here?

Yeah, it struck me as an acquihire, which is basically they're purchasing her entire company to get her to work there.

You're right, she probably did have a long earn out, but I bet she did okay off it.

Okay, that's what I'll do.

I've never met her, but I'll do that.

So help me understand why this hire makes sense for CBS.

As far as I know, Barry Weiss has no TV news experience.

Her print experience was more on the opinion side.

I find CBS News to be kind of like the textbook example of the just the facts, ma'am, kind of old school journalism.

But she has been better known, I think, recently, at least, for more activism, for being kind of anti what she views as woke, for being a full-throated defender of Israeli government policies.

So why do you think CBS decided she's the person we need?

Yeah, like I'm with you on the problem and certainly wasn't suggesting that like CBS, everything was going perfectly.