Jane Fonda Urges New York Audience to Push Attorneys General Against Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery Merger

Jane Fonda urged attendees at a live event in New York City to sign a petition asking their state attorneys general to block the proposed Paramount Global and Warner Bros. Discovery merger, characterizing the deal as a threat to “free speech” and “freedom of expression,” according to Deadline’s account of the remarks. Fonda, who was married to the late CNN founder Ted Turner, told the audience that she has a “personal stake” in CNN and said she does not want the network “to see it go that way.” Deadline reported that Fonda framed the merger opposition as part of a broader effort to influence government oversight before the transactions are finalized. At the event, Deadline reported that Fonda specifically called on attendees to “sign a petition to tell your state attorneys general to block” the merger. Her comments tied the petition effort to legal and regulatory scrutiny by states, with the actress arguing the proposed combination would amount to a “direct attack” on First Amendment protections. The remarks were delivered in the context of a pending corporate process affecting major U.S. media properties, including CNN. Under the petition approach described by Deadline, the mechanism for action would be state attorney general involvement, with signers encouraged to take steps that could contribute to state-level review or litigation related to the merger. A spokesperson or representative for the merger parties was not quoted in the Deadline summary provided here. Nor does the available information detail which specific state(s) would be targeted through the petition, what form of legal action is envisioned, or what specific corporate commitments would be contested. Still, the event highlights how celebrity voices are being deployed in high-profile media consolidation disputes, with Fonda’s statement placing emphasis on institutional control of news outlets and the public’s ability to receive independent reporting. Deadline’s report describes her remarks as centering on constitutional rights, and her personal connection to CNN through her marriage to Turner, who founded the network. The next steps, based on the reported petition call, would depend on whether attendees sign and submit the petition, and whether state attorneys general take up the matter in the manner Fonda described. The merger’s status with federal and state regulators was not addressed in the provided material beyond the call for attorneys general to intervene.

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