Shock move from senior ABC correspondent after alleged secret warship trip

• Reporter failed to disclose $16,000 junket

A high-profile ABC journalist has resigned from the public broadcaster, 10 weeks after allegations emerged that he had accepted a paid work trip to Germany and had not disclosed it.

Andrew Greene was the ABC's defense correspondent when he reported on German manufacturer ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) earlier this year.

Media Watch revealed in June that Mr. Greene had traveled as a guest of the company while telling his bosses he was on annual leave.

The journalist did not inform his bosses about the arrangement, and a segment was broadcast promoting TKMS, which was competing against Japan-based Mitsubishi Heavy Industries for a contract to build a fleet of Australian warships.

The senior defense correspondent filed a segment for The World Today about TKMS, including quotes from its chief executive Oliver Burkhard.

"We know what we're doing," Mr. Burkhard told Mr. Greene in the report.

I know our competitors, they have never been exported in the past.

The ABC had thought that Mr. Greene had obtained audio of Mr. Burkhard's press conference by email, rather than traveling to Germany in person.

"Across northern Germany, shipyards are at capacity as military orders increase. Rising global strategic tensions mean business is booming," Mr. Greene reported.

After revelations of Greene's alleged junket came to light, the story was removed from the ABC website.

Other media, including The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, did disclose the travel arrangements to readers at the time.

Media Watch host Linton Besser exposed the veteran journalist and said he had become "undone by weakness before temptation" and that the scandal would undermine trust in journalistic institutions.

Greene spent 10 weeks on leave while the broadcaster investigated the allegations before he resigned on Monday.

Canberra bureau chief David Lipson advised ABC staff in an email.

"The ABC maintains the importance of upholding its editorial and other policies," Mr. Lipson wrote.

In June, ABC stated that the Media Watch allegations were serious, and if proven, Greene's actions would be "unacceptable and could constitute misconduct."

The junket to Germany on a business-class return ticket was worth around $16,000, which also included hotel stays in Hamburg and Kiel, paid for by ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems.

The ABC confirmed to Daily Mail that Greene had resigned.

"We thank Andrew for the great contribution he has made to the ABC and to audiences, including his excellent reporting as National Security and Defence Reporter, and wish him all the best," a spokesperson said.

The ABC maintains the importance of upholding its editorial and other policies.

Greene joined ABC in 2010 and had been the broadcaster's defense correspondent for the last decade.

Australia's $10 billion warship program has attracted plenty of international competition among global shipbuilders, particularly since Defence Minister Richard Marles' 2023 announcement of an ambitious naval shipbuilding program.

These companies have spared no expense, even hosting foreign journalists on luxurious press trips to showcase their naval technology and promote their bids.

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Trump claims he made a side deal with Skydance for an additional $16 million in the '60 Minutes' settlement

Donald Trump all but confirmed a report that he struck a "side deal" with the soon-to-be owners of Paramount over the 60 Minutes lawsuit , claiming that Skydance Media's supposed promise to run public service ads in support of the president would place the settlement amount at approximately $35 million.

In a long-expected but still heavily denounced surrender to the president, Paramount - which is finalizing an $8 billion mega-merger with Skydance that needs the Trump administration's approval - agreed to pay Trump's future presidential library $16 million (minus legal fees) to settle his lawsuit against CBS News that the network's own lawyers called without merit.

While Paramount specified that the settlement didn't include any apology for the interview with Democratic nominee Kamala Harris at the center of the "frivolous" complaint, nor was any money paid directly to the president, Fox Business correspondent Charles Gasparino soon reported that Skydance owner David Ellison - son of Trump-supporting billionaire Larry Ellison - added a secret sweetener to the agreement.

According to Gasparino, the younger Ellison—who now expects to take over Paramount and CBS within the next few weeks—agreed to "run between $15 million and $20 million of public service ads to promote causes supported by the president" once the merger is complete.

"A spokesperson for Paramount said that Paramount knows nothing about the alleged side deal between Trump and Ellison, had absolutely nothing to do with it, nor was it a part of what the board approved, and the mediator sanctioned," regarding the reportedly clandestine agreement.

Of course, Paramount denying knowledge of the secret deal appears to be the entire point of the exercise – which allows the president an even bigger profit from a "baseless" case that most legal experts said would likely be dismissed by the court in the end.

Additionally, as Gasparino observed , Ellison's promise to Trump could help Paramount avoid allegations of bribery as the deal was made without their knowledge. Democratic lawmakers and free press advocates have already promised Congressional hearings, criminal investigations and civil lawsuits on behalf of shareholders.

Paramount executives had expressed concerns for months that any large settlement could place the company's board in legal peril for violating anti-bribery statutes, especially as chairwoman Shari Redstone - who was a driving force behind the settlement - looks to clear $2 billion with the merger.

Speaking to reporters early Friday morning following a speech at an Iowa rally, Trump was asked about the recent settlement with Paramount and CBS - and he effectively confirmed Gasparino's reporting.

"We did a deal for about $16 million plus $16 million, or maybe more than that, in advertising... It's like $32 to maybe $35 million," the president boasted.

Trump also praised both Eillsons, expressing enthusiasm for his "friend" Larry. "I think he's going to run CBS very well, and I think he's making a good deal to buy it. I think he's great," the president told the press pool, then added about David: "He has a son who is a fantastic young man too."

At the same time, he insisted – much like Paramount and his hand-picked Federal Communications Commission chairman Brendan Carr, who will have final say on approving the merger – that the lawsuit settlement was completely unrelated to Skydance's pending acquisition of Paramount.

Meanwhile, a week before the settlement was announced, it was reported that David Ellison was bragging to his Hollywood friends that the lawsuit would be settled soon and spoke in an upbeat tone about the negotiations.

Despite the president's claim over the weekend, there are still some conflicting accounts about the handshake deal with the younger Ellison and whether it will be honored.

The president's claim that the settlement is worth anything more than the announced $16 million figure is false, according to a source familiar with the situation, Variety reported Neither Paramount nor Skydance Media has agreed to grant free advertising airtime to Trump, the source said.

Representatives for Skydance Media did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Still, whether CBS will be running millions of dollars of pro-Trump ads or not after Skydance takes over, the fear within the newsroom – which has been roiled in turmoil for months over the Trump litigation and Paramount's surrender to the president - over the new corporate ownership is palpable .

"There is great fear about what comes next," one CBS News staff member told CNN , a sentiment that was shared by network employees with The Independent .

The Independent is the world's most free-thinking news brand, providing global news, commentary and analysis for the independently-minded. We have grown a huge, global readership of independently minded individuals, who value our trusted voice and commitment to positive change. Our mission, making change happen, has never been as important as it is today.

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Paramount’s Fate Moves to FCC, Where Media Bias and DEI Loom Large

(newsrealtime) -- Paramount Global's merger with David Ellison's Skydance Media moved one step closer to completion this week after the New York-based media company settled with President Donald Trump's news-bias lawsuit against its CBS News division.

Now, it's up to the Federal Communications Commission and its chairman, Brendan Carr, to either reject Paramount's sale to Skydance or approve it, possibly with conditions.

Trump named Carr to lead the agency in January, elevating an outspoken supporter who has repeatedly fired public broadsides at the press. The FCC chairman said earlier this year that the president has "been right on these media bias issues," and suggested he would look at how CBS handled the interview that prompted Trump's lawsuit in the context of the agency's merger review. Broadcasters benefit from access to public airwaves and therefore must serve the public interest, he said.

Carr also said he would examine the Skydance deal in light of Paramount's efforts to end " invidious forms of discrimination reflected in media companies' DEI policies. Trump has been pushing to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion policies from the federal government, corporate America and beyond, issuing executive orders banning these practices and asking agency heads to identify targets, including listed companies, to investigate for "illegal DEI" efforts.

Trump accused CBS of selectively editing quotes in a 60 Minutes interview with then Vice President Kamala Harris during the presidential race last fall to make her answers more succinct. To settle the case, Paramount agreed to pay $16 million for his legal expenses and a donation to his future presidential library.

“This has nothing to do with that,” Trump told reporters early Friday morning. The CBS interview “was just totally separate. This was when I was running. This had nothing to do with what was taking place in government.”

If the FCC does impose conditions on the merger, it could take cues from complaints filed by the Center for American Rights, a conservative-leaning nonprofit public interest law firm that has accused US media outlets of bias.

The center has suggested that approval be contingent on concessions, including that Paramount locate broadcast executives and editorial staff in cities other than New York and Los Angeles to better ensure a balance of viewpoints. The group also wants an independent ombudsman to resolve complaints about coverage and for Paramount to commit to an ideologically diverse hiring pipeline by recruiting at schools like Liberty University and Hillsdale College.

The agency is also likely to scrutinize Paramount's board for ideological diversity—whether it has representation from different backgrounds and political persuasions.

Daniel Suhr , president of the Center for American Rights, said he's "especially encouraged about the inclusion of disclosure for interview transcripts," one of the terms of the CBS settlement.

The addition of a news bias monitor that's somehow supervised by the FCC would be unprecedented and would likely violate a provision in the federal Communications Act that bars government censorship, said Harold Feld, senior vice president at the advocacy group Public Knowledge.

“We’ve never seen this before, and it certainly would seem to go against everything that the FCC stands for,” he said.

Although the FCC has not previously imposed conditions exactly like the ombudsman role in past merger reviews, it is not unusual in antitrust cases for monitors to be appointed to ensure compliance with certain conditions, said Andrew Jay Schwartzman, senior counselor at the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society.

Journalists within CBS News are concerned that the merger could compromise their newsroom's independence and integrity, according to current employees. Staffers are worried that if an independent ombudsman were appointed, that person could interfere with news coverage.

Prominent journalists , including former Washington Post executive editor Marty Baron and former CBS News president Andrew Heyward, have criticized the settlement. Former CBS anchor Dan Rather told Variety The deal marked a "sad day for journalism."

CBS News has already come under more scrutiny in recent months. Former CBS News president Susan Zirinsky returned in January to oversee standards at the division, adding a new level of scrutiny . And Paramount Chair Shari Redstone requested to review 60 Minutes segments focused on Trump after the president criticized the show's reporting on him in April.

Paramount has long maintained that the Trump lawsuit was "without merit," citing broad First Amendment protections for the press and the fact that CBS did not report anything factually incorrect.

But the case coincided with the FCC's review of Paramount's $8 billion merger with Skydance and raised issues that have traditionally been popular with Republican critics of the media.

Both Carr and Paramount have stated that the lawsuit and regulatory review are unrelated, but individuals within Paramount have long believed that a settlement was necessary before any ruling on the merger, which was agreed to almost exactly one year ago.

The FCC's media bureau, which reviews such mergers, could approve the Paramount deal with conditions, without elevating it to a public vote by the full commission. Verizon Communications Inc.'s recent acquisition of Frontier Communications was approved at the bureau level after the carrier agreed to curb its DEI efforts.

Democrats on Capitol Hill and at the FCC were quick to criticize the settlement and to link the agreement to the pending decision at the FCC.

Democratic Senator Edward Markey called Trump's lawsuit "frivolous" and said its timing "raises serious questions about FCC independence and Paramount's true reason for settling with Trump." The FCC's merger review should be free from political interference and proceed with "the utmost transparency." He said Carr must hold a full commission vote on the merger.

Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren said Wednesday she's calling for an investigation into whether the Paramount settlement with Trump violates any anti-bribery laws.

“Paramount folded at the same time it needs Trump’s approval for a billion-dollar merger,” she said in a social media post.

Trump has aggressively attacked media organizations from CNN to the New York Times and the Washington Post, using the term “fake news” to discredit unflattering reports. The president won a $15 million settlement from ABC News last year over claims that host George Stephanopoulos defamed him by describing a previous court verdict.

After 60 Minutes aired segments about Trump's contentious visit with Ukraine's president in February and his designs to take control of Greenland, Trump lashed out on social media and called on Carr specifically to " impose maximum fines and punishment" on CBS.

Anna Gomez, the only Democratic FCC member and an outspoken critic of the commission’s current stance on the media, said Paramount’s decision to settle “casts a long shadow over the integrity of the transaction pending before the FCC.” She will be participating in a town hall organized by the American Civil Liberties Union to discuss the state of free speech rights on July 8.

She also called on her colleagues to bring the Skydance merger before the full commission for a vote.

--With assistance from Stephanie Lai.

(Updates with comment from President Trump in sixth paragraph)

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