Former “The View” co-host Rosie O’Donnell is making headlines again — this time for a fiery interview in which she attacked a proposed media mega-merger and leveled a shocking accusation at CBS News chief Bari Weiss, who is Jewish.
Speaking with Variety, O’Donnell described the planned Paramount acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery — the company that owns CNN — as “tragic,” warning that it would effectively make Fox News the mainstream standard rather than an outlier. But her comments took a darker turn when she turned her sights on Weiss, who has been leading efforts to steer CBS News toward the political center.
“Look at what’s happened to CBS News and ’60 Minutes,’ which was the gold star of their entire network, and they blew it up,” O’Donnell said. “This Bari Weiss person, I don’t know how she can live with herself. There are people who are sidling up to him and history will record all of their names, what they did, and who they stood next to.”
She then added, “If you’re in a room with 10 Nazis at a table and you’re the only one who’s not, there’s a pretty good chance you’re a Nazi.”
The comment — widely interpreted as a direct swipe at Weiss — drew immediate condemnation, given Weiss’s Jewish identity and her prominent role as a journalist who has criticized both the far left and the far right. Weiss, who previously worked at The New York Times and now leads CBS News, has been a vocal advocate for viewpoint diversity in journalism.
O’Donnell’s Opposition to Paramount Merger
O’Donnell’s broader grievance centers on the proposed merger between Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery. If completed, CNN — currently owned by Warner Bros. Discovery — would fall under Paramount’s control. Paramount is chaired by David Ellison, son of Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, a prominent supporter of former President Donald Trump.
“It would be like Fox taking over all news channels. Imagine if Fox was not one outlier and Fox was the mainstay? That’s what’s happening with Hollywood now and the Ellisons, and it’s tragic,” O’Donnell told Variety.
The former actress and comedian, known for her role in “A League of Their Own,” has long been a vocal critic of Trump and conservative media. But her latest remarks have sparked a firestorm, with critics accusing her of crossing a line by invoking the Holocaust in a personal attack on a Jewish journalist.
A History of Controversy
O’Donnell’s hostility toward Trump and the political right is well-documented. The interview comes amid reports that she has struggled with what some have described as “Trump Derangement Syndrome” — so much so that her own therapist reportedly warned her to stop obsessing over the former president for the sake of her mental health. O’Donnell has said she refused to take that advice.
In January, O’Donnell left the United States and moved to Dublin, Ireland, telling fans she was seeking Irish citizenship. She has also said her adopted son believes Trump personally forced them to relocate.
Breitbart News has previously covered O’Donnell’s numerous inflammatory statements about Trump and his supporters.
Neither O’Donnell, Weiss, nor representatives for Paramount or Warner Bros. Discovery have responded to requests for comment on the interview at the time of publication.
Source: www.breitbart.com — https://www.breitbart.com/entertainment/2026/08/19/rosie-odonnell-says-david-ellison-taking-over-cnn-would-be-tragic-calls-jewish-bari-weiss-a-nazi/