Billionaire investor showed interest in CNN as Warner Bros. Discovery planned to split up: report

Billionaire tech and media investor Barry Diller reportedly expressed interest in buying CNN from Warner Bros.Discovery last year as the media conglomerate planned to split up, though the talks never went beyond preliminary inquiries.The overtures from Diller were described by The Wall Street Journal as personal and separate from his role as head of media and internet giant IAC.The idea of Diller buying CNN was never seriously considered and did not advance to the WBD board level, according to The Journal.Warner Bros.

Discovery has said CNN was not and is not for sale.IAC declined to comment on the report, saying Diller is not commenting on any interest in CNN.Last month, Netflix agreed to acquire Warner Bros.Discovery’s studio and streaming business in a $72 billion mega merger.

WBD plans to spin off Discovery Global — including CNN — into a new publicly-traded company.WBD executives said CNN is viewed as a core asset of the planned spinoff and plays a critical role in distribution agreements, making a sale impractical and costly from a tax perspective.“CNN is an incredibly important part of the future of Discovery Global once it separates from Warner Bros,” a WBD rep told The Post in a statement.“While interest in the premier global news network is not at all new, CNN was not and is not for sale.”IAC controls Dotdash Meredith, which recently rebranded its corporate name to People Inc., one of the largest digital publishers in the US.Its brands include People, Better Homes & Gardens and Investopedia.IAC also owns the digital news outlet The Daily Beast.Diller is married to fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg, whom he wed in 2001 after a decades-long relationship.In recent years, Diller has spoken candidly about his personal life, revealing that he had romantic relationships with men before marrying von Furstenberg and describing their marriage as a deep, enduring partnership.Before Diller’s outreach, WBD laid out a plan to split the compan...