By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire

Donald Trump’s first eight months back in the White House have erased any illusion of restraint. He is not just following the Project 2025 playbook — the authoritarian blueprint he once claimed to know nothing about — he’s executing it with surgical precision. From purging diversity programs to steamrolling media independence, Trump has unleashed a blitzkrieg of white nationalist policymaking under the guise of federal power. And now, with the blessing of federal regulators, he has the media — including Black-owned and Black-centered platforms — under his heel. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) recently approved the $8 billion acquisition of Paramount Global — parent company of CBS and BET — by Skydance Media. The merger was greenlit just days after Paramount paid a $16 million settlement to Trump, resolving a lawsuit over a “60 Minutes” interview with then-candidate Kamala Harris. Critics say the timing was no coincidence.

During a PBS interview, journalist Dylan Byers said plainly: “It certainly seems that way. All available evidence suggests that this was a payoff dressed up as a settlement.” The fear, said Byers, is that this is the new cost of doing business in Trump’s America. “If you need any deal to get done, any merger, any acquisition, you might be forced to cough up — the number seems to be — $16 million to the Trump Presidential Library.” Even more chilling is what the deal required: the gutting of DEI initiatives, the installation of a political ombudsman to monitor “bias,” and an additional $20 million in PSAs dedicated to causes “near and dear to the president’s heart.” One lone FCC commissioner voted against the deal, citing “overreach by the FCC and capitulation by Paramount.” Brendan Carr, FCC Chairman, was blunt in his public remarks: “President Trump is fundamentally reshaping the media landscape.” He applauded Trump’s direct attacks on legacy media giants like ABC, NBC, and CBS, now effectively under his influence.

That influence extends to content and culture. BET — a pillar of Black music, film, and storytelling — has abruptly suspended both the BET Hip Hop Awards and the Soul Train Awards indefinitely. It’s a blow many in the Black community see as part of a larger strategy: silencing Black voices while making media whiter, safer, and Trump-approved. A viral video by TikTok user @TalkUrShxxtNene has ignited online conversations by connecting the dots that mainstream outlets have tiptoed around. “So, BET has suspended BET Hip Hop and the Soul Train Awards indefinitely,” the video begins. “Now I want everyone to pay attention to this s**t.” The post breaks down the timeline and details of the Paramount-Skydance merger, pointing out the suspicious coincidence of Stephen Colbert’s show being canceled, CBS executives changing their messaging, and the networks now reportedly having a “CC monitor for Trump.” “This is about Trump making the guillotine whiter,” she says in the video. “Only white people should be seen. And they’re going to dismantle BET whether we realize it or not.” “Little by little, they’re going to take BET away from us,” she warns.

Her video points to a larger agenda: the erasure of Black visibility in media, the collapse of Black cultural programming, and the sanitization of entertainment to reflect Trump’s white nationalist vision. “They’re eroding everyone else and leaving the white people there to sit,” she says. “Blue eyes and blonde hair are not the architects of beauty. That’s racism. That’s eugenics. And they’re going to keep throwing that in the entertainment space because everything is there. The media controls everything. And right now, Trump has it under his boot.” Under Skydance’s takeover — and with Trump’s hand guiding every major federal agency — CBS, BET, and other Paramount properties are being forced to undergo “comprehensive reviews” to ensure “viewpoint diversity.” Translated: no more liberal, inclusive, or racially conscious content that could offend MAGA sensibilities. During the same PBS segment, anchor Geoff Bennett asked Byers, “Is this sort of the new template for future media deals — this sort of new era of political appeasement?” “Yes,” Byers answered. “As long as everyone plays ball — pay the settlement, dismantle DEI, install a political censor — then your deal goes through. This is the way deals get done, at least so long as Trump is in office.”

Black voices, Black spaces, and Black storytelling are being sacrificed in these deals. Trump’s administration has already gutted DEI efforts in federal agencies, banned references to systemic racism, and pushed new education guidelines that eliminate or sanitize discussions of slavery and civil rights. This isn’t just about Trump controlling the message. It’s about erasing communities and histories he sees as expendable. And doing so by leveraging the federal government, corporate media, and billions of dollars in hush-money settlements. The media — once a check on presidential power — is now a pawn in his political empire. As @TalkUrShxxtNene concluded in her viral takedown, “Don’t be stupid. Everyone likes to see the glass half-full instead of that b**ch half-empty. This is what erasure looks like.”