David Ellison and Bari Weiss. Bari Weiss (Status Illustration/Leigh Vogel/Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images)

Late last year, during a trip to New York City, David Ellison quietly made time for a meeting that said as much about his worldview as it did about his interest in media. According to people familiar with the matter, the Hollywood scion set time aside on his busy calendar to meet with Bari Weiss, the founder of The Free Press. Ellison, like a number of C-suite executive types, has long been an admirer of Weiss’ style of journalism, I'm told, viewing her as one of the more compelling voices in the shifting landscape of independent journalism.

During the meeting, Ellison, who is set to control CBS News once the Paramount GlobalSkydance Media deal closes, expressed strong interest in recruiting Weiss to work in some capacity with the network, according to people familiar with the matter. I'm told that Ellison…

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