Inside the CBS-Viacom Drama

[View this email in your browser]( [images-hive-logo (1).jpg]( “It’s the Story of a Person Who Was Mistreated by Her Father”: Inside the CBS-Viacom Drama Good morning! It was a particularly rollicking day in the Hive newsroom, dear reader, as we scrutinized the discomfiting [mating rituals]( of Donald Trump and his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron; the [vertigo-inducing precarity]( of paper billionaire Adam Neumann’s real-estate house of cards; Mick Mulvaney’s [open call]( for the banking industry to indulge its wildest palm-greasing fantasies; and why Michael Cohen may be [holding out for a pardon](. But who wants to talk about yesterday’s news, anyway? Today, dear reader, in honor of our new paywall—a world-historical development on par with the Norse wheel, say, or the Franklin stove, which you can sign up for [here]( bring you a bulging cornucopia of reportorial delights: William D. Cohan reports the inside story of Shari Redstone’s Oedipal struggle to re-marry her father’s media empire. Joe Pompeo has the dirt on the peace offering that would have seen AT&T sell out a piece of Turner for a settlement with the Justice Department. And Chris Smith explains the real reason that Rudy Giuliani joined Trump’s legal team—and why people who know him think he’s “lost a step.” We’ll be discussing it all, and more, on V.F. Hive on Cheddar, which you can watch [here]( at noon Eastern. We hope that you’re enjoying what you’re reading. Have a great day! [Shari Redstone at the Sun Valley Conference in Idaho, 2017.] “It’s the Story of a Person Who Was Mistreated by Her Father”: Inside Shari Redstone’s Twisted Plot to Breed CBS and Viacom By William D. Cohan Does the fate of a potential $14 billion Wall Street merger all come down to Shari Redstone’s longitudinal beef with her father? “AT&T Is Killing Them”: The D.O.J. Spurned a Possible Peace Offering Over the $86 Billion AT&T-Time Warner Merger—And Now the Trial Is Entering the Endgame By Joe Pompeo Many observers see the case tilting toward AT&T, but crucial questions still sow doubt: could AT&T use Time Warner’s content to squeeze competitors? And if it could, why wouldn’t it? “With Rudy, It’s Never About the Best and the Brightest”: Is Giuliani the Best Trump Can Do? By Chris Smith Old allies like Bernie Kerik and Marc Mukasey insist New York’s former mayor is still on top of his legal game. But many see Rudy as a media play—and a by-the-hour presidential homey. “There are plenty of names I could give you of lawyers who are wired into that office,” a more recent Southern District alumnus says. “Rudy is not one of them.” “Toxic” “Abusive” “Despicable”: Ronny “Candyman” Jackson Allegedly Terrorized Employees By Bess Levin The White House, amazingly, is standing behind Dr. Ronny Jackson. Facebook Stock Is Soaring Because People Are Just as Hooked as Ever By Maya Kosoff A new earnings report shows that Facebook users aren’t going anywhere—yet. [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Instagram]( [LinkedIn]( This e-mail was sent to you by The Hive. To ensure delivery to your inbox (not bulk or junk folders), please add our e-mail address, [vanityfair@newsletter.vf.com]( to your address book. View our [Privacy Policy]( [Unsubscribe]( Copyright © Condé Nast 2018. One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007. All rights reserved.