Bari Weiss. AFP Yonhap News. 

Bari Weiss (41), founder of the American online media outlet 'The Free Press,' has been appointed as the news chief of CBS News, Reuters reported on the 6th (local time).

According to Yonhap News, Paramount Skydance, the new parent company of CBS, officially announced Weiss's appointment alongside its acquisition of The Free Press. The acquisition is reportedly valued at approximately $150 million (about 211.7 billion KRW).

Weiss, a former opinion writer for The New York Times (NYT), founded The Free Press in 2021 and has established a voice distinct from mainstream media by sharply criticizing the 'woke culture' within the American left.

While 'woke' originally referred to an awareness of racial and gender discrimination and social justice, it has evolved into an ideological standard for left-leaning discriminatory policies, often misused as a tool for reverse discrimination against conservatives. 

Consequently, opposition to excessive political correctness (PC) in American society has grown to include more than half of the public, and the right-wing camp now uses 'woke' in a critical sense to describe the imposition of left-wing values and identity.

Weiss has described herself as having been the most right-leaning person at the NYT.

Given this background, Weiss's appointment as news chief is expected to lead to significant shifts in the reporting tone of CBS News.

Notably, Weiss will report directly to David Ellison, CEO of Paramount Skydance, bypassing CBS News President Tom Sibrowski. David is the son of Larry Ellison, the founder of Oracle—who is a long-time supporter of U.S. President Donald Trump and consistently ranks among the world’s top three wealthiest individuals—and he acquired Paramount, the parent company of CBS, last August.

With such an unconventional direct reporting structure in place, there is a positive outlook that CBS News, which has faced criticism for being left-leaning, may be on the path toward normalization and balance.

Weiss stated to the staff, "I will make CBS News the most trusted news organization in the U.S. and the world," adding, "I will pursue fair journalism that applies equal standards to both of America's political parties."

Media experts analyzed this appointment as a symbol of the rapid changes occurring in the media industry.

Pablo J. Boczkowski, a professor of communication at Northwestern University, assessed Weiss's appointment as a "significant cultural shift."

He noted that it is a clear example of media power being reshaped as the influence of individual brands and independent media outlets begins to surpass that of traditional mainstream news organizations.