Paramount to Buy the Free Press, Name Bari Weiss CBS News Head

Paramount Skydance Corp. is poised to buy the startup news outlet the Free Press and name its founder, journalist Bari Weiss, as the editor-in-chief of CBS News, according to people familiar with the matter.

The role will allow Weiss to guide the editorial direction of a news organization whose programs include 60 Minutes and CBS News Sunday Morning. Founded in 1927, CBS News has been home to industry legends such as Walter Cronkite and Edward R. Murrow.

Bari Weiss

Photographer: Leigh Vogel/Getty Images

Weiss will report directly to Paramount Chief Executive Officer David Ellison, according to the people familiar, who asked not ...