‘Block the Merger’ Brings FCC, FTC and WGA Leaders to Forefront of Paramount–Warner Opposition

A high-profile coalition—including an FCC commissioner, a former FTC commissioner, and the WGA West president—stepped onto the stage in Los Angeles to sound the alarm against the Paramount Skydance–Warner Bros. merger. What’s driving this resistance and where could it lead next?

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A Gathering of Authority and Advocacy

On June 6, 2026, the “Main Street vs. the Merger” event—branded under the rallying cry “Block the Merger”—was held at the Lumiere Cinema in Beverly Hills. It featured FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez, former FTC Commissioner Alvaro Bedoya and Writers Guild of America West President Michele Mulroney speaking out against the proposed Paramount Skydance acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. Their presence signaled rare regulatory and creative unity in opposing media consolidation.

Voices of Concern: Free Speech, Jobs, and Creative Diversity

Commissioner Gomez, the sole Democrat on the FCC, appealed to the public’s resolve: “I’m exhausted … But it’s not time to be tired. It’s time to get inspired because your voices really do matter,” she declared, invoking free‑speech stakes. An IATSE below‑the‑line worker described the merger’s ripple effects: “fewer films and TV shows being made … devastated the 10s of 1000s of us working in production labor.” These testimonies illustrated how consolidation threatens not just content diversity but livelihoods across the production ecosystem.