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ACTIVISTS EXPOSE NETWORK’S ALIGNMENT WITH TRUMP AND CONSERVATIVE PROPAGANDA

NEW YORK, NY — This morning, activists with Extinction Rebellion NYC staged a disruptive protest inside Paramount Global’s headquarters, home to CBS News, to denounce the network’s alignment with Trump and the far-right agenda outlined in Project 2025. Nine activists locked arms in front of Paramount’s lobby escalators, backed by a massive “REBEL OR DIE” banner and smoke flares, while chanting “CBS sells lies — people die!”

The action comes as CBS executives angle to position the network for sale to billionaire Larry Ellison, a Trump ally and Oracle co-founder. Activists warn this looming deal is not just business—it’s part of a deliberate effort to consolidate U.S. media under far-right influence, normalizing propaganda and silencing dissent.

CBS is not just failing the public; it is actively collaborating with forces dismantling civic society. By platforming fossil fuel lobbyists, Trump surrogates, and canceling popular shows, the network has signaled to the Trump administration that it is a willing partner in reshaping American media to serve authoritarian power.

Project 2025, the conservative blueprint for Trump’s second term, outlines plans to seize control of federal agencies, roll back climate protections, and weaponize state power against dissent. Central to its strategy is a compliant media landscape—one CBS appears eager to provide.

This morning’s disruption is part of a growing wave of actions targeting media conglomerates that have failed in their most basic responsibility: telling the truth. The public deserves more than distraction and spin while the planet burns. If action is not taken now, climate catastrophe threatens more than just the structures currently at risk.

WHY “REBEL OR DIE”?

We’ve already surpassed the 1.5°C threshold that was meant to keep our planet safe. We now face a rapidly accelerating crisis that threatens all life on Earth. To minimise the damage, we must halt biodiversity loss and cut greenhouse gas emissions to net zero—urgently and decisively.

The climate and ecological emergency leaves us with no middle ground. To rebel is to choose life. It is to reject a system that profits from destruction and to demand the immediate action that governments and corporations have failed to deliver. There is no time for compromise or half-measures; the science is clear, and the stakes could not be higher.

But rebellion is not only resistance — it is hope in action. It is ordinary people stepping forward, together, to protect one another and safeguard a liveable future.

PHOTOS AND VIDEOS

You can see photos and videos from the action here. XR NYC owns the media in this folder, and you have permission to use these media with attribution to "Extinction Rebellion NYC".

Additional footage is available here. XR NYC does not own the footage in this post.

QUOTES

“CBS markets itself as a credible voice in news, but its record tells another story. By normalizing climate denial and giving platforms to liars and lobbyists, it has abandoned the public trust,” said Jenna, an Extinction Rebellion member who participated in the action.
“When the stakes are this high — when billions of lives and the survival of entire ecosystems hang in the balance — journalism that refuses to tell the full truth is nothing short of violence,” said Miles, a spokesperson for Extinction Rebellion NYC.
“Media outlets that treat the administration’s criminality as if it were legitimate, are failing in their role as defenders of American democracy,” said Larry, an Extinction Rebellion member.
“Networks like CBS will be remembered not for their awards or ratings, but for their silence, their cowardice, and their complicity in the greatest crime in human history,” said Henry, an Extinction Rebellion member who held the Rebel or Die banner.

About Extinction Rebellion

Extinction Rebellion is an international movement that uses nonviolent civil disobedience to compel government action on the climate and nature emergency.

Extinction Rebellion exists because the conventional approaches: voting, writing to politicians, lobbying, and signing petitions, have failed. Powerful political and economic interests prevent change, as does our outdated political system itself. Our strategy is therefore one of nonviolent, disruptive civil disobedience – in short, it is a strategy of rebellion.

Climate boiling is here and now. It’s happening all around us, and it hits historically vulnerable communities hardest of all. Extinction Rebellion demands that all of us, especially major institutions and governments, tell the truth about the ongoing Sixth Mass Extinction. Extinction Rebellion believes that, when faced with the government’s criminal inaction, it is a citizen’s duty to rebel, through peaceful civil disobedience .

Internationally, Extinction Rebellion has been demanding that those with power act now to halt the worst outcomes of the climate catastrophe currently unfolding. Unlike other climate advocacy groups, Extinction Rebellion understands that we must go beyond politics and establish Citizens’ Assemblies. Citizens’ Assemblies are deliberative bodies that are, like juries, formed of randomly selected members of the public. Assembly members hear expert testimony and develop recommendations on specific policy issues. Only through this method can we achieve the fair and just transition we need.

Leading by example, Extinction Rebellion is fighting for a more stable, sustainable world.

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ACTIVISTS DISRUPT CBS HEADQUARTERS